USFA releases report on fire deaths, injuries

Although the rate of fire-related deaths and injuries declined from 2003 to 2007 in the United States, "the United States fire problem, on a per capita basis, is one of the worst in the industrial world," notes a recent report released by the U.S. Fire Administration.

In 2007, fire departments across the country received 1.6 million fire calls that resulted in thousands of deaths and tens of thousands of injuries, the report stated. From 2003 to 2007, fire-related fatalities dropped 20 percent, yet the United States still has the fifth-highest fire-related death rate among the 25 industrial nations included in the report.

In addition to deaths and injuries, the report also found that economic losses related to fire in the United States are higher than losses from hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, earthquakes and all other natural disasters combined.