Absolutely, all of those has to have had a major impact on the reduction of civilian fire deathsLikely drop in fatalities is due to smoke detectors, installation of sprinkler systems when buildings are being renovated and/or newly constructed and increased awareness of fire safety practices (with the exception of lithium-ion battery related fires).
As Mark Twain said. There are liars, there are damn liars and then there are statisticians!I had heard the story of a fire death only within 24 hours of a fire, but then was told the BFI either follows up or is notified if a fire death occurs later on (I don't know what, or if a, time limit exists).
A member who succumbs after 24 hours is considered a line-of-duty death, so why shouldn't a civilian's death be considered fire-related?
That 24-hour period, I believe, applies to when the DC's fatal fire investigation report is required.
Maybe a fire marshal can shed some light on this.
You are Correct. In the FDNY if someone lived for 24 hours or more, their death was not counted as a fire death. It is crazy but true.If I remember correctly back in the 70’s the FDNY changed the definition of Fire Deaths. I believe they only classified it a fire related death if it occurred within 24hrs of fire.
Maybe a historian or someone with a better memory can correct me.
The FDNY does not complete a civilian death report if a victim lives for more than 24 hours. However, the medical examiner, after an autopsy, will contact the Fire Marshall's any time fire is listed on a death certificate. The Fire Marshall keeps the official # of fire deaths reported by the Medical Examiner. This number (not the number of victims that died within 24 hours) is the official # of deaths reported each year.Starting in the 60's NY would tout the fact that they had much fewer fire deaths than other large cities. Of course they never mentioned the 24 hour rule when the other cities didn't have the same time limit.