QUALITIES OF LIFE, CAPE GIRARDEAU; SPECIAL REPORT: PUBLIC SAFETY; FIRE DEPARTMENT FARES WELL IN REPORT

With good ratings by a national organization and good emergency response times, the Cape Girardeau Fire Department fared well in the Chamber of Commerce's recent report on the city's quality of life.

The department was rated a four by the Insurance Service Organization, a national fire insurance organization, White said. That's a good rating, considering that one is the best and 10 is the worst.

The ISO is a national program that rates fire departments by assigning numbers based on risk levels, White said. And White said that a four is a good rating.

"We would like to try to get a three someday," Hetzel said. "As I work in this job, one of the things I plan to do is to improve the ISO rating."

Several insurance companies in town look to the rating in applying insurance premiums to homeowners and businesses, White said. The higher the rating, the higher the premium and vice versa, he said.

The way the rating is determined is that the ISO performs a lengthy study of the department. They look at the number, location and age and condition of fire stations, manpower, water systems, dispatch facilities and training, among other things, White said.

The way to a lower, and better, rating would be improvement in any of those areas. Adding stations, manpower or training facilities, or improving water systems would help get a better rating, White said.

What the department will be concentrating on by way of improvements is the improvement of the communication systems and more firetrucks.

While the department's response time increased from 3.25 minutes in 1991 to just above 4.5 minutes in 1995, White said anything below five minutes is considered pretty good.

He said rural numbers are added into the times, which pushes them upward.

The increasing response times is also a sign of a growing city, White said.

"As a city grows, the response time is obviously going to go up with it," White said. "It's a sign of a growing city, but below five minutes is a totally acceptable response time."

He said he will be watching the response times, and if they continue growing, it could mean that additional fire stations are needed.