NEWS RELEASE

Bob Morgan

FPANT President - 2008

1000 Throckmorton St., Fort Worth, Texas 76102

For Immediate Release

Date: May 7th, 2008

GRAPEVINE FIRE MARSHAL AND FIRE CHIEF TO BE HONORED

Grapevine, TX - The Fire Prevention Association of North Texas (FPANT) will honor Grapevine Fire Marshal Mike Keefer and Grapevine Fire Chief Steve Bass at a Noon ceremony on May 13, 2008, at the Gaylord Texan Hotel and Convention Center, 1501 Gaylord Trail in Grapevine, Texas.

Both fire officials will be recognized for their efforts in adopting a fire sprinkler ordinance for historical buildings in the City of Grapevine. The ordinance will help ensure the safety of visitors and other occupants of these historical buildings, as well as, help prevent a catastrophic fire from destroying the treasured landmarks.

Keefer and Bass worked diligently to communicate to the building owners and city officials the tremendous benefits to life safety and property protection that would be provided by a complete automatic fire sprinkler protection system. Additionally, the City of Grapevine agreed to provide the financial backing necessary to allow such important life safety systems to be installed rather than simply adding on a costly retroactive requirement to the facilities, a very unique aspect that helped the project become a reality. Special recognition is given to Councilmember Sharon Spencer, Director of Public Works Matt Singleton, and City Manager Bruno Rumbelow for their significant contribution to the success of the ordinance.

This was certainly not an easy task and not one where many other fire prevention officials have achieved success. The ability of Keefer and Bass to educate the public, business owners, and elected officials as to the importance of these fire protection systems is not only impressive, but sets a great example for other fire prevention professionals to follow in their own jurisdictions.

NOTE: The Fire Prevention Association of North Texas (FPANT) is a local organization of fire code officials and other persons interested in life and fire safety and the principles of enforcement, engineering, and education in fire prevention. Our mission is to put forth a more unified statement from the group of North Texas fire prevention personnel represented in coordinating, adopting and passing laws, codes, ordinances, local policies, and amendments regarding fire and life safety for the public welfare in the DFW metroplex and the state of Texas.

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The ceremony will take place during the IBC/IFC Egress Seminar on May 13th, 2008.  For more information on the seminar, please see the event page.

http://www.fpant.org/training/egress051308.html