By Marc Benjamin
The Fresno Bee
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FRESNO, Calif. — A humorous video that compares a home sprinkler system to living with a firefighter has won raves on YouTube and brought national attention to the Fresno Fire Department.
The one-minute public service announcement produced by the department has received more than 32,000 hits in four months and has gained popularity in the past few weeks. The department has had more than 50 requests from agencies across the country to use the video as their own.
It depicts a Fresno firefighter living with a local family. The firefighter irritates the family by hogging the bathroom, taking over the kids’ video games and eating more than his share of dinner. It ends with a message from Fresno fire Chief Randy Bruegman: Having sprinklers in your home is like having a firefighter living with you. “Maybe even better,” he wryly concludes.
Local advertising and public relations firms say the message is effective.
“The combination of humor mixed with a serious message is a recipe that doesn’t always work, but in this case the message is entertaining, attention-getting and, in my opinion, very effective,” said Debra Nalchajian-Cohen, owner of Cohen Communications in Fresno.
Two nationwide organizations plan to use the ad on their Web sites.
“We have always tried to treat sprinklers with a very serious tone,” said Jeff Shapiro with International Residential Code Fire Sprinkler Coalition, a group based in Texas that promotes the installation of residential sprinkler systems.
“The way Fresno did this, you walk away with an understanding that you know what sprinklers are about.”
Lorraine Carli, National Fire Protection Administration spokeswoman based in Quincy, Mass., said her organization also will use the ad on its Web site.
“It takes a comic approach to fire safety so they get people’s attention and has clear messages we want to get across to people,” she said.
The department started a public service campaign last year after receiving a $100,000 federal grant. The campaign included bus advertisements and videos to air on television and in local movie theaters.
The idea of using humor evolved after Bruegman and the department’s public information officer, Ken Shockley, started looking for a way to create a watchable commercial that people wouldn’t immediately turn away from. It was Shockley who decided to post the result on YouTube, a popular video sharing Web site.
“I am a little bit surprised by the response, but when I saw it the first time, I knew we had done something pretty unique for a fire department PSA,” Bruegman said.
The sprinkler ad used the Aiello family of Clovis and Fresno city firefighter Dave Phillips. The family is related to the photographer who shot the commercial, Greg Aiello.
Bruegman said the Fire Department wants to show that sprinklers can reduce fire damage, control fires faster, save lives and reduce danger to firefighters.
A survey by the National Fire Protection Administration evaluated communities where sprinklers became mandatory in the past 20 years.
In Scottsdale, Ariz., the Fire Department credits sprinkler systems with saving eight lives during a 10-year period.
In 1990, Vancouver, British Columbia, adopted sprinkler requirements and began tracking fire losses in homes with and without sprinklers in 1995. Officials credit home sprinkler systems with reducing average annual fire losses by more than 90%.
For a new, 2,000-square-foot home, sprinklers can be installed for about $3,000. Insurance companies are starting to offer fire insurance discounts for homeowners with fire sprinklers, Bruegman said.
The Fresno City Council passed an ordinance in May 2006 requiring a fire sprinkler in new-home kitchens but lost a legal challenge in August 2006 from the Building Industry Association of the San Joaquin Valley.
The city filed an appeal in court and could activate the ordinance if it is successful.
Mike Prandini, the BIA’s executive director, said costs for fire sprinklers are higher than Bruegman’s estimates and that people have not demanded sprinklers when building homes.
“If people want it, they will buy it and pay the extra cost,” Prandini said.
“Our experience is that they don’t want to pay the extra cost, they want granite counter tops or specialized flooring and when they look at the way homes are built today, they believe houses being built today are safe.”
Bruegman says he hopes the sprinkler video and others posted on YouTube will change people’s minds about fire safety. He said the department is seeking additional grant money for future videos.
Copyright 2008 The Fresno Bee