American Fire Sprinkler Association
Response to Dateline Story

In a March 4, 1998 Press Conference, the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) announced that its staff had filed an administrative Complaint against Central Sprinkler Corporation in regard to the Omega series fire sprinkler. Friday, March 6, “Dateline NBC” broadcast a 13-minute report on the Omega sprinkler. Both reports thrust the fire sprinkler industry into the national limelight ... albeit not in the most positive sense.

However, the Omega segment in the "Dateline" program did open with the statement: "Fire sprinklers are silent guardians, safety devices you usually don’t even notice, yet count on in a crisis." The TV program also pointed out that there a millions of fire sprinklers in use and this report covered only one brand from one manufacturer, and they closed the program by noting that if you have sprinklers you should leave them unobstructed and not paint them or use them for anything other than fire protection.
During the week prior to the CPSC press conference and the "Dateline" broadcast, AFSA assisted Operation Life Safety in providing information on the issue to all fire departments in the U.S. that serve communities of 50,000 or more. The following information was included in that mailing to fire authorities around the country to assist them in responding to any questions.

• Fire sprinklers have a superior record. They have been installed in buildings since 1898, and about 30 million sprinkler heads are now installed each year. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that there have been no instances of multiple fatalities in buildings protected with sprinklers. Fire sprinklers for residential dwellings have been available since 1980. Jurisdictions that require sprinklers in homes report that there have been zero fire deaths in homes protected with sprinklers.

• Omega sprinkler heads represent less than two percent of the total number of sprinkler heads in use (8.5 million out of over 500 million). The vast majority of sprinkler systems, are extremely reliable and will provide the expected high degree of life and property safety.

• Sprinklers are activated by heat from a fire. The sprinkler nearest the fire will open and control the fire with a very small amount of water. Compared to fires in buildings without sprinklers, fires in sprinklered buildings cause much less property and water damage (nine to 10 times less).

• Fire sprinklers protect firefighters as well as civilians because they quickly control or extinguish the fire before firefighters arrive.

• Fire sprinklers conserve water and fire department resources. Fires in sprinklered buildings require one tenth the amount of water and about one half the number of firefighters and apparatus. Because the sprinklers quickly extinguish the fire (or control it to a small size and area), the fire attack lines may not be needed. Also, occupants near the fire often do not need to be rescued and occupants in other areas of the building often do not need to evacuate, further reducing the demand on responding firefighters.

"It is clear that the Central Omega-type heads have presented a challenge to our industry. I think 'Dateline' presented the issue with these sprinklers in a fair and objective manner. Rightfully, installation was not made an issue, nor should it have been. It was apparent that sprinklers in general were portrayed as being life- and property-saving devices that are extremely important to the American people. From a positive standpoint, millions of people who never knew what fire sprinklers were, now at least know their purpose," stated AFSA Chairman of the Board Jack Viola after watching the NBC program.

"Now that this issue is out in the open, Central Sprinkler Company and the Consumer Products Safety Commission need to diligently and expeditiously work on resolving their differences to the satisfaction of all affected parties and for the sake of public safety. Our challenge is to promote this resolution with the support of our industry," Viola added.