Fire Dept. improves ISO rating

May 02--A change in the ISO rating for Clay Center Fire Department is good news not only because it could lower insurance rates for Clay Center residents, but also because it's long overdue recognition of the good things that the department has done.

The department's rating has gone from a No. 4 classification to a No. 3 classification, on a 1 to 10 scale, according to Fire Chief John Ihnen. That's the same classification as bigger cities, including Junction City and Hays, he said.

"It's not something I did by myself, it was a team effort," Ihnen told the Public Safety Committee Tuesday. "We all did this."

Things the department has done to get that rating has included keeping very good records, and increasing the number of firefighters that respond to call with a mutual aid agreement with Clay Center/Hayes Rural Fire Department. That agreement has enabled more firefighters to respond more quickly, Ihnen said.

Purchasing the aerial ladder truck and moving/extending a water main to Maple Street has also helped improve that rating. Clay Center has always had "great water" with a lot of flow, but the department had actually been penalized on the ISO rating for it because they lacked the capacity to move it.

But the new truck changed that because it has a bigger pump. Extending/moving the water main helped because Wardcraft Homes is a location that needs to have a lot of flow, and that was factored into the rating.

A lot of other things went into the classification, and though Ihnen said he may have simplified how it was accomplished, he added, "it's a good thing for us to accomplish."

Council members and Mayor Thatcher congratulated the department for the improved rating. Councilman Randy Rundle said the department is to be "commended."

"This is something they've been working on for a long time and I'd like to commend them for that," Councilwoman Betty Livengood said in reporting on the matter at the regular council meeting last night.

It's also difficult to say whether the rating will have much if any effect on building insurance.

The change will likely have more of an impact on businesses than homes or residential areas, but Ihnen encourages everyone to contact their insurance provider to see if the rate drops because of it. It may even have an impact on rates on homes up to five miles outside of city limits, because of the improved response time.

"That's kind of the whole point," Ihnen said of the rating impact on insurance.

In other matters before the committee:

-- Police Chief Bill Robinson asked to purchase new vests and to pay for them in part with a grant. Although the grant may pay half the cost of the vests, the Public Safety Committee will recommend purchasing the vests at the next council meeting, as it has been budgeted for and needs to be done every five years.

-- Robinson requested the council consider not allowing people to live for an extended period in campers in residential areas, as it's becoming an issue.

-- The hospital has requested reducing the speed limits to 20 mph around the perimeter of the hospital, including on Sixth Street from the K-15 curve to Lafayette, on Lafayette from Sixth to Seventh Street, and on Seventh Street to from Lafayette to Anthony Street. Pedestrian cross walks will also be placed for people walking between the hospital and the west parking lot and on Seventh for people walking between the hospital and Meadowlark Hospital.

Both items will be acted upon at the next council meeting. Robinson said he had no issues with either of these requests, and pointed out that the speed limit on Liberty Street is 20 mph and was that on the portion in front of the hospital before Liberty Street was removed to expand the hospital.

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