Excerpted from EmergencyNet NEWS Service, Wednesday, July 3, 1996, Vol. 2 - 185

==============
**LEAD STORY**
==============

NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NAMES OUTSTANDING RESEARCH AWARD WINNERS

WASHINGTON (FEMA) -- The U. S. Fire Administration (USFA), part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), has acknowledged five fire executives with Outstanding Applied Research Project Awards.

This annual award recognizes excellent projects completed by students in USFA's National Fire Academy's (NFA) Executive Fire Officer Program. This prestigious academic program requires senior fire officers to meet stringent professional criteria for selection. Once selected, officers participate in a four-segment, advanced level program that provides broad perspective on major aspects of fire administration. After each course, participants must successfully apply their knowledge through an applied research project in their own community. A NFA staff panel evaluates student projects and the highest rated receive this award.

"I am extremely proud of the effort and dedication that went into these award-winning projects," said Carrye B. Brown, USFA Administrator. "Through these projects, we move one step closer to a safer future for our citizens and communities."

This year's recipients are:

Craig H. Kampmier, Swansea, Massachusetts Fire Department: Evaluation of a Mitigation Procedure for Small Liquid Oxygen (LOX) Spills. The experimental nature of this study has added to the scientific literature regarding the safety of liquid oxygen in hospital settings.

Mike Kuypers, district manager, Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Division of Forestry: A Marketing Strategy for Wildland Fire Reduction in Palm Coast, Florida. This study explains how to identify customers' understanding of fire threat, the appropriate methods customers chose to reduce the threat, and how much customers are willing to pay.

J. Curtis Varone, battalion chief, Providence, Rhode Island Fire Department: Providence Fire Department Staffing Study Revisited. Staffing levels on emergency fire apparatus continue to be a significant issue nationwide. The author presents additional evidence that four-person staffing significantly reduces the number and severity of injuries compared to three-person staffing.

Bernard E. Williams, deputy chief, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Emergency Response Department: Development of a Strategy for Conflict Management During Fire/EMS Department Amalgamation. Dr. Williams is the first international Executive Fire Officer Program student to win this award. Although he conducted his study in Canada, U. S. fire and EMS organizations considering mergers should find the information useful.

Thomas R. Wood, Assistant Chief, Boca Raton, Florida Fire-Rescue Services: A Study of Standby Water Fees/User Fees for Fire Sprinkler Systems Connections to Water Mains. Fire service and public utility agencies may find this study useful when developing cost plans for maintaining fire sprinkler systems.

The research award winners delivered their papers at NFA's 8th Annual Executive Fire Officer Graduate Symposium held May 17-19, 1996, in Emmitsburg, Md. NFA serves as the national focal point for enhancing the professional development of fire service and rescue personnel through education and training programs.

To obtain copies of the Executive Fire Officer Outstanding Research Award papers, please contact:

National Fire Academy
Executive Programs
16825 S. Seton Ave.
Emmitsburg, Md. 21727
(800) 238-3358, extension 1176

These papers are available also via FEMA's World Wide Web site at http://www.fema.gov