ARLINGTON, VA – The Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI), along with national electrical and fire safety officials, applauded action taken by Governor Beverly Perdue to put the safety of North Carolina citizens before the whims of special interests.
On Monday, Governor Perdue asked members of the North Carolina Building Code Council (BCC) to keep fire safety protections in the state building code. State and national safety advocates remain concerned that the BCC could vote to overturn electrical code requirements designed to protect North Carolina families and their homes from electrical fires. The BCC meets on Tuesday, September 15 to reexamine the statewide adoption of the 2008 National Electric Code early last year, calling for increased use of arc fault circuit interrupters (AFCI) to prevent deadly electrical fires.
“Today's action is a great example of Governor Perdue’s leadership and commitment to North Carolina citizens,” said Brett Brenner, president of ESFI. “We applaud the governor’s common-sense approach to providing North Carolina residents and their homes with the most advanced electrical fire protection available today.”
AFCIs are one of the newest and most important advancements in electrical fire protection. These innovative devices protect against arc faults in a home’s wiring that cannot be detected by standard breakers.
“The cost of increased electrical safety is insignificant compared to the damage and tragedy electrical fires cause year after year,” said Rob Kinniburgh, deputy chief of Fire Prevention Activities for the City of Charlotte. “Not only can AFCIs help decrease the number of electrical fires we see each year, but also the tax dollars used to fight these fires and the lives lost – both homeowners and firefighters – due to electrical fires.”
The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that nearly 50 percent of home electrical fires could be prevented with AFCI technology. Currently, 28 states have voted to expand or maintain existing requirements for AFCI installation.
“We want to thank Governor Perdue for taking this action to help ensure the safety of our citizens,” said Russ Dubinksy, spokesperson for State Farm Insurance Companies. “AFCIs help prevent short circuits and overloads to reduce the risk of fires and save lives.”
