press releases Archives - Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board

West Chicago’s New Downtown Investment Program Encourages Property Improvements—Including Fire Sprinkler Installations

The City of West Chicago has launched a new Downtown Investment Program aimed at revitalizing its historic downtown, attracting private investment, and encouraging significant property upgrades—including the installation of fire sprinkler systems.

The program, effective January 1, 2025, offers from 25 to 50 percent reimbursement grants of up to $75,000 for eligible projects, with as much as $100,000 available for improvements to historically significant or landmarked buildings. The new initiative consolidates two underutilized programs—the city’s former Façade Improvement Program and Retail & Restaurant Grant Program—into a single, more impactful grant offering.

“We were really trying to generate more interest, while also being more impactful with the grant funding to encourage private investment within our downtown,” said Business & Community Relations Director Kelley Chrisse. “One of the program’s standout changes is the newly eligible category of fire sprinkler installations—a safety upgrade not explicitly supported under previous programs.

“Fire sprinklers were not included before,” Chrisse noted. “We really wanted to make sure that was an option. With the age of buildings in the downtown, it was highly unlikely that investment would be made unless financial support was available.”

Fire sprinklers are critical for protecting life and property, especially in older structures where upgrades often come with challenges. By covering a portion of these costs, West Chicago is making it more feasible for property owners to modernize their buildings without compromising on fire safety.

Eligible properties include commercial and mixed-use buildings within Downtown TIF District #2. Improvements can range from large-scale interior and exterior renovations to smaller maintenance-focused projects such as roofing or accessibility enhancements. Fire alarms, HVAC systems, elevators, and chairlifts are also eligible for reimbursement.

“The goal is to preserve the integrity of these structures for the long term,” said Chrisse. “We weren’t seeing enough private investment in the ongoing maintenance of buildings, so we expanded the list of eligible improvements to encourage that work.”

The city budgeted $125,000 for the program in 2025 with the possibility of allocating additional funding if interest exceeds expectations. Chrisse has called on downtown property and business owners to apply and is hopeful that their interest will create a need for an additional funding request. “That’s the kind of success we want to see,” she adds.

The Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board (NIFSAB) supports these types of initiatives that promote fire protection as part of revitalization, while encouraging code compliance and mitigating long-term risk. For more information, search Downtown Investment Program on https://westchicago.org/

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Lisa2025-07-23T17:17:43-05:00July 23rd, 2025|Comments Off

Fatal house fires are a tragic reminder of why fire sprinklers are in national codes

Tinley Park, IL (April 3, 2025) – A fire in a split-level Carpentersville home with no fire sprinklers tragically resulted in the deaths of three young brothers on March 30. The boys, a one-year-old and two-year old twins, were too young to escape the home’s basement on their own. Two of the family’s dogs also perished in the fire.

The fire occurred mid-morning as all three boys were sleeping in the basement. Firefighters arrived on scene within four minutes of the fire being reported, but flames were coming out of the windows on the front of the house. According to officials, three other family members were also trapped inside the home but eventually got out with the help of responding firefighters. The children’s grandmother was treated at the hospital for smoke inhalation and is expected to recover. Even with a quick response from the fire department, the fire moved too quickly to get the children out of the home – highlighting an all-too-common occurrence in modern home fires across the country.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but it may have been caused by a space heater. During a press conference, officials said the home did have working smoke alarms. The home is uninhabitable and suffered $350,000 in damages. The village social worker has been working with the family to deal with the trauma and loss.

Unfortunately, the tragic fire in Carpentersville follows another recent example of a house fire that moved too fast for occupants to safely escape in Naperville on February 18. When firefighters arrived at the scene, they found heavy flames engulfing the first and second floors with a person trapped on the second floor. Efforts to reach the second floor were hindered by the intensity of the fire, flames erupting from nearly every window, the collapse of an interior stairwell, and holes in the second-story flooring.

A 75-year-old man, who had limited mobility, was eventually found dead on the second floor. His wife was taken to the hospital for treatment. According to the fire department, the fire, which was caused by unattended candles, displaced five people and caused estimated damages of $800,000.

Today’s fires can become deadly in as little as two to three minutes due to a variety of factors such as petroleum-based plastic furnishings that burn faster and more toxic, building practices such as lightweight construction materials that fail quicker and open-concept designs that allow smoke to travel more freely, and the emergence of problems with an increasing number of lithium-ion batteries in homes.

Both recent fires in Chicagoland are a tragic reminder of why fire sprinkler requirements are present in national building codes. More than 110 Illinois communities currently require fire sprinklers in all new construction homes. Fire sprinklers are individually heat activated, controlling a fire while it is small, which limits the smoke, and allows occupants to safely escape while the fire department responds. In approximately 90 percent of residential fires, only one fire sprinkler activates to control or extinguish the fire.

According to Erik Hoffer, executive director of the Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board, cost is often cited as the reason fire sprinklers are amended out of the national model codes when adopted on a local level, however, that puts residents and responding firefighters at unnecessary risk.

“Families affected by these recent home fires not only have to face the reality of lost loved ones and cherished possessions, but also the insurmountable costs associated with recovery from a devastating fire, such as medical care for injuries, long-term displacement, and property loss,” states Hoffer. “The savings offered by fire sprinklers far outweigh their initial cost. Fire sprinklers are proven to be the best solution to reduce fire risk while protecting residents, firefighters and property.”

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Lisa2025-04-03T08:53:08-05:00April 3rd, 2025|Comments Off

Understand, Applying, and Enforcing NFPA 25 Class on April 17

Understand, Applying, and Enforcing NFPA 25 Class

This highly interactive full-day course describes the requirements for properly maintaining a water‐based fire protection system in accordance with NFPA 25.
NOTE: The class will follow the 2023 edition of NFPA 25. We will provide attendees with a copy (one per fire department) if they are unable to bring it.

Date: Thursday, April 17
Time: 8:00 am – 4:00 pm – Check-in begins at 7:30 am
Location: Medinah Banquets, 550 Shriners Drive, Addison, IL

Continental breakfast and boxed lunch will be provided.
Certificates will be issued for contact hours/CEUs (ICC Preferred Provider approved.)

Please register by Friday, April 11

Register at www.bit.ly/nfpa25addison

Class is FREE with gift card #GIFT-01040

(After typing gift card number, you MUST click on the button to apply the credit.)

Questions? Please contact Erik Hoffer: [email protected] or (708)403-4468.

This class is provided by:
Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board and Illinois Fire Inspectors Association

Flyer-ITMClass-04.17.25

Lisa2025-03-06T09:40:55-06:00March 6th, 2025|Comments Off

Bennet, Collins, Malliotakis, Larson, Reintroduce Bill to Make High-Rise Apartments Safer for Residents, Firefighters

Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation Updates Federal Tax Code to Modernize Buildings

Washington, D.C. (February 12, 2025) — U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance’s Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight, and Susan Collins (R-Maine), co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus, reintroduced the High-Rise Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act to help place more sprinklers in older high-rise residential buildings where fires are especially dangerous. Companion legislation has been reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Representatives Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) and John Larson (D-Conn.), another co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus.

“Older high-rise apartments pose serious risks for residents and firefighters because they were completed before modern fire codes required sprinklers,” said Bennet. “This common-sense, bipartisan bill can help save lives by encouraging building owners to modernize their properties by installing sprinklers.”

“The annual cost of fires is enormous, resulting in the deaths of thousands of Americans and causing billions of dollars in property damage. Fortunately, state-of-the-art sprinkler systems can help avert these tragedies by controlling and extinguishing fires, protecting firefighters, and saving countless lives,” said Collins. “This bipartisan bill would create a tax incentive for property owners to modernize the sprinkler systems in their high-rise buildings, helping better protect these communities.”

“Our brave FDNY firefighters respond to more than 300,000 fires and non-fire related emergencies every year. These calls become all the more dangerous when they’re in older buildings that may not be up to current fire codes,” said Malliotakis. “I’m proud to join a bipartisan group of House and Senate colleagues in introducing this critical legislation to incentivize property owners to install more sprinklers in high-rise structures to reduce severe property damage and most importantly, protect residents and our firefighters who are on the front lines keeping our community safe.”

“It is critical to ensure all buildings are equipped with the proper fire safety systems,” said Larson. “Too many older high-rises lack sprinkler systems all together, endangering lives of residents and firefighters. I am proud to continue the work of my friend, the late Rep. Bill Pascrell, in this bipartisan effort that will keep residents safe and improve first responders’ ability to respond to building fires by supporting the installation of more modern sprinkler systems.”

Recent research has shown that Americans have the least amount of time today to safely exit their homes in the event of a fire than at any time in history, and fire deaths have steadily increased over the last decade. However, the current tax code does not adequately incentivize high-rise building owners to install fire sprinklers, since it treats them similarly to plumbing and depreciates the costs over 39 years. The High-Rise Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act encourages high-rises to modernize their fire prevention systems by decreasing this cost recovery to 15 years.

“Fire sprinklers are one of the most effective ways to save the lives of both civilians and firefighters in the event of a fire,” said Bill Webb, Executive Director, Congressional Fire Services Institute. “The Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI) strongly supports the High Rise Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act, which will make it more economical to install fire sprinkler systems in residential high-rise properties. Incentivizing installation of fire sprinkler systems will help to protect property and most importantly, save lives. CFSI looks forward to working with Senators Bennet and Collins, and Representatives Malliotakis and Larson to help this bill become law.”

“Residential high-rise structures are among the most challenging and dangerous environments the fire service operates in,” said Victor Stagnaro, Chief Executive Officer, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. “Automatic fire sprinklers are a proven technology that contains fire, provides residents the necessary time to evacuate, and saves lives. We applaud Senator Bennet, Senator Collins, Representative Malliotakis, and Representative Larson for their continued commitment to the safety of our citizens and the health and well-being of our nation’s firefighters.”

“Sprinklers save lives by helping address unique challenges posed by high-rise buildings such as longer egress times and distance, fire department accessibility and fire control,” Jim Pauley, President and CEO, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). “NFPA strongly supports the bipartisan High-Rise Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act and urges Congress to act quickly.”

“Statistics consistently show that fire sprinkles save lives,” said Steve Hirsch, Chair, National Volunteer Fire Council. “I applaud Senators Bennet and Collins and Reps. Malliotakis and Larson for reintroducing this important legislation, which would incentive the installation of sprinklers in high-rise buildings.”

“Almost every high-rise fire in this country has a firefighter injury and many more are having civilian and firefighter fatalities,” said Shane Ray, President, National Fire Sprinkler Association. “There should not be a high-rise building in America in 2025 that is not properly protected. Thank you to Congressman Larson, Congresswoman Malliotakis, Senator Bennet, and Senator Collins for protecting the occupants and firefighters.”

“I thank Senators Bennet and Collins for introducing the High Rise Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act,” said Chief Josh Waldo, President and Board Chair, International Association of Fire Chiefs. “Passage of this legislation would be a historic accomplishment by incentivizing the installation of fire sprinklers in high-rise buildings. As we have seen in the Grenfell Tower fire in the UK and in fires here in America, we must have the best fire protection systems possible in high-rises to save human life.”

The text of the bill is available HERE.

Lisa2025-02-20T15:15:21-06:00February 12th, 2025|Comments Off

HFSC Will Award $750 Stipends to 40 U.S. Fire Departments for Home Fire Sprinkler Outreach

The Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition (HFSC) will select 40 fire departments to each receive a $750 stipend to conduct a Home Fire Sprinkler Week outreach program during the week of May 11-17, 2025. The stipend program is generously funded by a grant from State Farm®. Applicants for the stipend must sign up for the free Built For Life Fire Departments (BFLFD) program and describe their plan to use and evaluate their awards.

Home Fire Sprinkler Week is co-sponsored by HFSC and the NFPA Fire Sprinkler Initiative, the week communicates the dangers of home fires to residents and firefighters and promotes the crucial safety advantages of constructing new homes and retrofitting existing residences with fire sprinklers.

Fire departments of any size or type can use the $750 stipend to:

* Create and print customizable materials from the Home Fire Sprinkler Studio
* Build a Home Fire Sprinkler NFPA 13D Display following the HFSC guide
* Produce an educational banner or canopy tent utilizing HFSC display graphics. Fire department logos may be added.
* Purchase a monitor to play HFSC’s educational videos
* Purchase a virtual reality headset to play HFSC’s VR video
* Post HFSC videos or graphics on their fire department Facebook page and use the stipend to boost the messages
* Build or refurbish a side-by-side demonstration

Participants in Fire Prevention Week can take advantage of the free resources of the HFSC Studio at Home Fire Sprinkler Studio to create a wide range of educational materials for their fire sprinkler community outreach initiatives.

With this easy-to-use online tool, fire departments can design their own flyers, posters, and social media cards; share messages through their social media platforms; and print customized materials to distribute at community events such as home shows and open houses, and during Fire Sprinkler Week and Fire Prevention Week.

Now in its eighth year, Home Fire Sprinkler Week has grown increasingly popular with fire departments in the US and Canada, and HFSC anticipates widespread participation again in 2025. Every day will feature a different theme focusing on key facts about home fire sprinklers and how they protect people living in homes, firefighters and the entire community. This year’s themes will be:

Monday: Fire is Fast, Sprinklers are Faster
Tuesday: The Cost to Communities Without Fire Sprinklers
Wednesday: Fire Sprinklers are Part of a Fire-Safe Community
Thursday: It’s Easy to Live with Home Fire Sprinklers
Friday: Protect What You Value Most

Installed fire sprinklers significantly reduce home fire injuries, deaths and property loss. “That’s why all national building codes require sprinklers in new construction,” said Lorraine Carli, NFPA vice president of outreach and advocacy and president of the HFSC. “Every new home built without fire sprinklers is substandard threatening Community Risk Reduction for decades. Our Home Fire Sprinkler Week resources underscore not just that we can do better; they underscore exactly how to do better.”

Fire Departments can apply here: 2025 HFSC Stipend Program. The deadline to apply for the stipend is March 3, 2025.

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Lisa2025-02-04T15:19:25-06:00February 4th, 2025|Comments Off

Two Years After Fatal Harper Square Fire, the Trauma Continues as Residents in Nearly 80 Units Remain Displaced

Tinley Park, IL (January 30, 2025) – On January 25, 2023, the Harper Square fire was the first of 17 fires in unsprinklered residential high-rise residences in Chicago that year. It resulted in one fatality, multiple injuries, hundreds of residents displaced, and millions of dollars in property loss and displacements.

Erik Hoffer, executive director of the Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board, compares the incident to the early 2025 California wildfires. “Losing more than 100 residences due to fire in a high-rise building should be viewed as no less tragic than that number of residences lost to fire in a neighborhood. They are both equally devastating to the residents themselves who face long-term displacement and deserve the attention of the public and elected officials,” he says.

For Harper Square residents, the last two years have been a time of uncertainty, stress, frustration and exhaustion as costs mount and insurance coverage has been exhausted. Unfortunately, a similar tragedy could strike again since fire sprinklers are not being retrofit during reconstruction after the fire.

Harper Square was built before the 1975 City of Chicago Code requiring fire sprinklers in all new high-rises. Today, more than 600 residential high-rise buildings in Chicago stand without full fire sprinkler protection, with cost often cited as the reason not to retrofit fire sprinklers.

However, the real question of cost is, “What is the cost of NOT installing fire sprinklers when a fire occurs?” Harper Square is a model example of post-fire costs far exceeding the cost of installing fire sprinklers.

Fire sprinklers prevent these tragedies. Heat from a fire individually activates each sprinkler to extinguish or control the fire while it is small, allowing residents to safely escape. Fire sprinklers are the most effective solution to reduce fire risk, protecting residents, firefighters and property.

“Fire may have shaped Chicago’s history, but we mustn’t let it shape our future,” states Erik Hoffer, executive director of the Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board. “The time is now for our city leaders to readdress fire safety in Chicago’s high-rises – passive fire protection is not enough. Fire sprinklers are the answer.”

For more information about the 17 Chicago high-rise fires in 2023, please visit: https://highriselifesafety.com/high-rise-fires-in-2023/

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Lisa2025-03-14T13:29:36-05:00January 30th, 2025|Comments Off

Village of Richton Park Updates Residential Code With Home Fire Sprinkler Requirement

Richton Park, IL – Earlier this year, the Village of Richton Park adopted updated fire and building codes requiring all new construction homes to be equipped with home fire sprinklers. In meetings leading up to the fire and building code updates, Fire Chief Mick Smith and Community & Economic Development Director Pete Saunders emphasized the importance of retaining the NFPA 13D home fire sprinkler requirements included in the 2018 Edition of the International Residential Code (IRC). Having learned about the faster speed of today’s home fires and the quick, lifesaving benefits of fire sprinklers, and with the approval of Village Manager Regan Stockstell, Chief Smith and Director Saunders presented the updates to the Village President and Board of Trustees. The President and Board voted in favor of the updates, taking a significant step toward establishing a fire-safe community.

Not only does the updated edition of the IRC require the installation of fire sprinklers in all new residential properties, but there are also local amendments mandating fire sprinklers in homes undergoing major renovations.

“Across the country, fire damage is in the billions of dollars every year, and fire deaths are in the thousands every year,” Fire Chief Smith states. “With this requirement, the Village of Richton Park has taken critical steps forward in reducing the damages that can be caused by a fire as well as the lives that could be lost due to residential fires.”

Congratulations to the Village of Richton Park for implementing this code update that will protect its housing stock and residents for generations to come.

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Lisa2025-01-09T13:07:33-06:00January 6th, 2025|Comments Off

Fire Sprinkler Inspections, Testing & Maintenance Full-Day Course

Fire Sprinkler Inspections, Testing & Maintenance Full-Day Course
Instructor: Ron Ritchey, Great Lakes Services Coordinator, National Fire Sprinkler Association
Tuesday, January 7, 2025
8:00 am – 4:00 pm (Central) (Check-in begins at 7:30 am)

MAAC Emergency Services Training Campus
4203 Montdale Park Drive
Valparaiso, IN

Class is limited to 90. Please register by Thursday, January 2.
Register at www.bit.ly/nfpa25valpo
Class is FREE with gift card # GIFT-01040 (After typing gift card number, you MUST click on the button to apply the credit.)

View Flyer Here: Flyer-ITMClass-01.07.25

Lisa2024-12-06T11:37:57-06:00December 6th, 2024|Comments Off

City of North Chicago Updates Codes Including Home Fire Sprinkler Requirement

North Chicago City Council

North Chicago, IL—The city of North Chicago updated its codes and will now require the installation of fire sprinklers in all new-construction, single-family dwellings. The codes were updated following North Chicago’s August 24, 2024, adoption of the 2021 editions of the International Residential Code (IRC), International Building Code (IBC), and International Fire Code (IFC).

North Chicago Economic and Community Development Director Taylor Wegrzyn and Fire Chief John Umek both discussed the safety and economic perspectives of adopting this code for the community.

“It’s an extreme help to the community just from a safety standpoint,” Umek said, noting that fire sprinklers give the fire department the ability to have a faster response to a fire by holding a fire in check before fire crews arrive.

Wegrzyn agrees that safety is the major reason for the code adoption including home fire sprinklers. “From an economic development perspective, we believe it will increase overall home values and have numerous positive trickle-down impacts in our local community.”

Wegrzyn and Umek also noted the value of third-party resources and expertise, including the Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board, to emphasize the importance of installing fire sprinklers in homes.

“Today’s fires are becoming deadly in as little as two to three minutes,” said NIFSAB Executive Director Erik Hoffer, noting that Lake County has seen an unsettling number of recent home fire deaths. Those include a three-fatality fire in Zion and a one-fatality fire in Round Lake, both on October 29th, and a one-fatality fire in Hawthorn Woods on November 9th.”

Hoffer was present at the City Council meeting on November 18th to recognize the proactive fire safety measure taken by the City Council and staff. North Chicago joins nearly 110 other Chicagoland fire-safe communities, including neighboring Waukegan and Lake County, that protect news homes with fire sprinklers.

Congratulations to the community of North Chicago for adopting this code!

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Lisa2024-11-20T10:37:21-06:00November 19th, 2024|Comments Off

Industry-Donated Fire Sprinkler System Protects Goat Barn at Nonprofit Elawa Farm Foundation

Lake Forest, IL – Through combined donations made by the local fire protection industry, a new goat barn at Elawa Farm Foundation in Lake Forest has been equipped with fire sprinklers, protecting the goats that will be social media ambassadors for the organization’s charitable mission.

The farm was constructed in 1917 for A. Watson and Elsa Armour. Mr. Armour was a member of the family that owned Armour & Company, the largest meat packing company in the world at the turn of the 20th Century. In 2002, Elawa Farm Foundation was established to raise support for the restoration of the property. Its mission is to steward a historic farm that enriches the surrounding community with experiential learning, broadening access to education, nutritious food, and the local food system.

Also once sharing the property was The Wildlife Discovery Center. When that program more recently ended, Elawa Farm Foundation took over the vacant animal spaces at the farm with a plan to introduce farm animals including goats, chickens, and ducks.

Elaine Madansky, Director of Farm Operations of Elawa Farm Foundation, spoke about how important Foundation officials felt it was to protect their new goat barn with a fire sprinkler system. “We want to protect the safety of the goats,” Ms. Madansky said. “The city of Lake Forest did not require that we have a fire sprinkler system in that structure, but we felt an obligation to make sure those goats would be kept safe.”

When Josh Hucker, who is the fire plans examiner, life safety inspector and commercial building inspector for Lake Forest, learned of the plan, he suggested getting financial support from the local area and immediately reached out to the Northern Illinois Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board (NIFSAB) for assistance. “I felt it would be a good outreach to the agriculture community,” Mr. Hucker stated.

NIFSAB coordinated with the local fire protection industry to provide the fire sprinkler system in its entirety through industry donations. Great Lakes Plumbing & Heating donated the design work for the system, while product donations came in from Core & Main Fire Protection, Lubrizol Blazemaster, Mid-Continent Marketing/Watts Water Technologies, and Viking SupplyNet.

Century Automatic Sprinkler donated the labor to install the fire sprinkler system in the barn. As a family-owned and operated company for the past 47 years, Century saw this as a great opportunity to give back to the community and protect not only people and property but also animals.

“The building frame was put together very well and the installation process was very simple due to exposed fire sprinkler pipe,” said Century Vice President, Dave Cobian, Jr. “Following the installation, we had the system inspected and tested by Josh Hucker and it passed all of its tests. The system is now in service and the goats are living happily and protected,” Mr. Cobian. Jr. added.

“It is nice to see an organization like Elawa Farm Foundation recognize the need for fire sprinklers to protect people visiting the farm and the animals,” says Erik Hoffer, NIFSAB Executive Director. “It is even more gratifying when members of the fire sprinkler industry step up and donate to further the Foundation’s education efforts and mission.”

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Lisa2024-10-28T17:30:39-05:00October 28th, 2024|Comments Off