Frederick to debate, adopt sprinkler law

Thursday, Sept. 7, 2006

The number of fire-related deaths in Frederick County is low compared to the statewide average, and elected officials and fire rescue professionals want to keep it that way.

Frederick city leaders will likely follow county leaders and pass a law requiring fire sprinklers in all new homes beginning Oct. 1, 2006. The item is one of several on the agenda for the mayor and Board of Aldermen meeting tonight.

The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 101 North Court St.

The Frederick County Board of Commissioners approved a similar ordinance in July. Other jurisdictions in Maryland have adopted such laws, the result of a push by state firefighters and organizations like the Maryland State Firemen’s Association.

Frederick County averaged 0.5 fire-related deaths per 1,000 people in the past four years. Statewide, the number of fire fatalities is 1.5 per 1,000 people, according to Faron Taylor, deputy director of the Maryland State Fire Marshall’s Office

State law requires residential sprinklers in high rises, townhomes, and apartment buildings, but not in one-and two-family homes. Those homes, however, account for half of all structure fires in the country, according to a report by Steve Krone, the city’s fire protection engineer.

A study based on 12 years of data from Prince George’s County showed that fire damage in homes with sprinklers amounted to $3,429 per reported incident, compared to a potential loss of $326,752 per incident had the homes not been equipped with a sprinkler system.

Those figures were cited in a December 2005 report issued by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and funded by the U.S. Fire Administration.

Sprinkler systems may save lives and property, but they can also save the county’s volunteer firefighter system, according to Chip Jewell of the division of fire and rescue services, and a member of the Maryland State Firemen’s Association.

‘‘Ultimately, if you have residential sprinklers in every dwelling, you will have less fires,” he said.

Fire Marshall Mike Dmuchowski concurred, and said that sprinklers save time and money overall.

‘‘With all the development coming, and with a need to keep a volunteer firefighter system in place, we need some help. Sprinklers are an avenue to minimize calls, and the amount of equipment we need,” Dmuchowski said.

A recently adopted county ordinance allows more homes to be built on smaller lots to allow as an incentive for developers to sell moderately priced homes. Frederick city is considering a similar ordinance.

High-density development means single-family homes are closer together, creating more opportunity for fire to spread. Some of the materials used in new homes are also more toxic, and therefore more dangerous. Vinyl siding, for example, is a petroleum-based material that burns hot.

‘‘Home construction materials today create a higher, faster burn,” Jewell said. ‘‘There is so much more toxicity, too, in the plastics and polymers that weren’t around 30 years ago.”

Cost of housing

Additional costs associated with the new requirement include a larger water line from the street to the property line, from a 3⁄4-inch to 1-inch line, Krone said. He estimates the larger pipes cost about $1.70 more per foot.

If a booster station is needed in areas where water pressure is not strong enough, the cost could go up more, but Krone said that is not a likely possibility. Krone’s estimates do not include the installation of the system itself.

Bryan Patchen of the Frederick County Builders Association estimated that overall, the new systems would add between 2 percent and 3 percent to the cost of a new home. Coupled with city’s higher property taxes, Patchen said, it could dissuade potential buyers.

Though he said no one can put a price on human life, the facts do not warrant residential sprinkler systems.

‘‘Fire deaths are much more likely to occur in holder properties, and the city ordinance won’t do anything to affect the safety of those living in those properties,” Patchen said.

Dmuchowski pointed out that townhomes, condominiums and apartments did not stop selling when they were required to have sprinkler systems.