The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) one of the world’s premier consensus based standard development organizations has published a request for Public Comments for a project that will establish a Professional Qualification Standard for persons conducting temporary traffic control at highway incident scenes.
Should the Project be ultimately approved, a Technical Committee will be formed to draft a standard subject to the vigorous rules established by the NFPA under rules promulgated by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). NFPA develops, publishes, and disseminates more than 300 consensus codes and standards intended to minimize the possibility and effects of fire and other risks.
This important first step in the standards making process is the result of actions on the part of the CVVFA Emergency Responder Safety Institute who brought this issue to the attention of the NFPA.
Chief Doug Forsman of the Champaign IL Fire Department made the case for the newly proposed standard on behalf of many interested parties after having been contacted by the CVVFA. The Standards Council decision follows the article. It is important that you weigh in by clicking on the following link and tell NFPA you support this project. Two sample responses are attached in the downloadable document at the conclusion of this article.
Depending on public comment the next step in the process is the formation of a balanced technical committee that will begin the development of the new standard.
The Emergency Responder Safety Institute believes strongly that professional qualifications for those controlling traffic and emergency incidents will protect responders and the pubic and will provide safe quick clearance of accident scenes thus reducing congestion. Individuals who have technical expertise in temporary traffic control should consider applying for membership on the technical committee when the project moves forward.
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Useful links
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NFPA Codes and Standards Website