Village FD Wants New Data Collection Program

Rockville Centre Fire Department Chief Mark Murray wants to change how the department's records and data are kept because he said the current system it uses has been riddled with problems since it was first purchased two years ago.

Murray explained that the department currently uses DECOM to record data like call responses and time logs, but bugs have plagued the system since the village first bought it. He said that fire department officials have to input data into the system several times because the information somehow disappears.

"The problems cropped up immediately," Murray said of DECOM. "It just wouldn't retain the information. We would put in the call info, go to retrieve it, and it's not there. We'd have to put it in five to six times before it would stay."

He added that the current system does not generate a New York State Fire Report — a detailed account of all the fires in the village and call responses — which they have to submit every year to the New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control. That information is then submitted to the Federal Emergency Management Office, who then reimburses departments for certain expenses. Murray said the department missed out on $7,000 in FEMA reimbursements this year.

As of now, he added, the department hand writes its NYS fire report.

What Murray wants the village board to do is approve a switch to Red Alert, another data collection system that automatically generates the state fire report and can be customized to the department's needs. "It's the most efficient system out there," he said.

Village spokesman Jeff Kluewer said that the matter is under review by the board and could not comment before the review is complete. He did say that the board would not make its decision until mid to late October at the earliest.

John Martins, a spokesman for Red Alert, said about 63 percent of Nassau County fire departments use Red Alert and it would cost around $40,000 to install it. The RVCFD, he noted, could also pick and choose what programs it would want in its personalized system, but then the cost would vary. 

The next village board briefing session is on Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. at Village Hall.