America Burning

America Burning: The Report of The National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control is a 1973 report written by the National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control to evaluate fire loss in the United States and to make recommendation to reduce loss and increase safety of citizens and firefighting personnel. The report concluded that fire prevention and fire safety education for the public were critical to reducing the losses associated with fires, and that firefighters also needed to be better educated for their jobs in fighting fires. As a result of the report, in 1974 the United States Congress passed the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 leading to the formation of the U.S. Fire Administration, the National Fire Academy, the National Fire Incident Reporting System, and the Center for Fire Research within the National Bureau of Standards. One of the most critical findings of the report was that the high death rate among American firefighters should be addressed. As a result of this report, fire fighting agencies planned life and property loss-reduction strategies for handling incidents before they occurred.

One of the outcomes of the report was the practice of architects and engineers including fire safety in the design of buildings.

National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control
The Fire Research and Safety Act of 1968 provided a mandate for a Presidential Commission to be established for research into the hazards of death, injury, and property damage caused by fire. The Act authorized a twenty-member commission to conduct a two-year study aiming to determine effective measures for reducing the destructive effects of fire.

President Richard Nixon appointed the Commission in June 1971. During 1972, the Presidential Task Force conducted regional hearings across the United States surveying communities with regards to flammable incidences. The Presidential Commission concluded their study on May 4, 1973, submitting a report to President Nixon entitled America Burning: The Report of The National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control. On July 12, 1973, President Nixon released a presidential statement commending the National Commission on their analysis and findings related to fire safety and the fire loss dilemma in the United States.

Recommendations of the NCFPC
America Burning: The Report of The National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control granted ninety recommendations emphasizing fire prevention and safety education at the local community level while incorporating safety measures to control, detect, and extinguish flammable incidences.