Encinitas Fire Department gets good rating

The Encinitas Fire Department recently announced that the Insurance Service Office (ISO) has recently upgraded the department’s Public Protection Classification (PPC) to a 2/2X.

The last PPC survey was taken in 2012 and gave the department a rating of 3/9. The new rating of 2/2X will be effective Feb. 1, 2017.

The ISO reviews communities’ public fire suppression capabilities and develops a classification for insurance companies, allowing them to assess the risk of local fire protection. The rating is used to establish appropriate fire insurance premiums for residential and commercial properties.

ISO surveyed 48,632 communities nationwide. Less than 3 percent of these communities have a class of 2 or lower, which now include Encinitas. The PPC rating system runs on a scale from 1 (highest) to 10 (lowest). The components affecting the score include the performance of the fire department, the available water supply and the communications systems in place (i.e., dispatch).

Over the past several years, the department has been working hard to improve its rating via efforts in community risk reduction, according to a news release and also focused efforts on first-alarm response and initial attack to minimize potential loss.

Encinitas was given a split classification of 2/2X to reflect the different scores assigned to different areas of the city. The first number (2) applies to properties within five road miles of a fire station and 1,000 feet of a hydrant (most of Encinitas). The second number (2X) applies to properties within 5 miles of a fire station but beyond 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant (Olivenhain).

— Submitted press release