By DENISE R. FREELAND

News Leader Staff Writer

Residents of the portion of the Minerva Local School District that falls within Brown Township and outside of Minerva's village limits need to be aware that their fire coverage is changing, Minerva Volunteer Fire Department Chief Richard McClellan told Minerva Village Council at its meeting, May 13.

MVFD has provided fire protection for the Minerva school district in Brown Township for more than 50 years, McClellan said, but this year the Brown Township Volunteer Fire Department and trustees decided to change the contract and boundaries of the coverage area.

Under the new contract, BTVFD will be the primary responder for the Minerva school district in Brown Township, McClellan said, and BTVFD will also handle all emergency and non-emergency calls in this area. MVFD will continue to handle emergency calls for a small area just outside the Minerva corporation limits.

For structure fires, both departments will be called, said BTVFD Chief Michael Penick

For more than 20 years, Brown Township had paid MVFD $3,000 per year to provide fire coverage in Minerva school district, Brown Township. This year MVFD raised the cost to $4,000. Although BTVFD will be covering a larger area, the contract change will save Brown Township money and goes back to the original intent of the contract, Penick said. MVFD has always been and is still guaranteed two hours of pay per run; however, under the new contract, Brown Township will be paying MVFD for fewer runs.

"We have a qualified, capable fire department," Penick said. "It's only fair to all the people in Brown Township that we be as efficient as possible."

The 911 system is in the process of being changed over, Penick said. In the meantime, the departments will "err on the side of safety."

Fire departments are assigned a Public Protection Classification of one to 10 by the Insurance Services Office, with class one being the best rating and class 10 being basically an indication of no fire protection.

According to the ISO Web site, a community's classification is based on three main areas of the fire-protection program. Ten percent of the overall score is based on how well the fire department receives and dispatches fire alarms; 50 percent is based on the fire department's equipment, training and response to emergencies; and 40 percent is based on the community's water supply.

MVFD's PPC within Minerva village limits, and outside the village limits, including Minerva school district in Brown Township, within 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant, is class five. Outside the village, more than 1,000 feet from a fire hydrant, its PPC is class eight, according to Richard J. Laird, Jr., director of Community Mitigation Programs ISO.

BTVFD's classification in the area in question is class six within 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant, and class nine otherwise, Laird said. This could result in higher property insurance premiums for homeowners and manufacturing facilities.

"Since ISO is an insurance-advisory organization providing insurers with a variety of underwriting and rating services, the company cannot speculate on how a classification change will affect local property insurance premiums. Insurers alone are responsible for determining individual premiums," Laird said. "However, in general terms, for insurers using the ISO PPC information, an improved protection class can lead to lower premiums, all other factors remaining equal. Additionally, insurers may use several different rating methods depending on the type of coverage provided and the location of the property.

"Since insurers - not ISO - establish fire-insurance premium pricing, ISO suggests that individual property owners consult with their insurance representative concerning the potential effect of these changes in PPC ratings on property insurance premiums."

"This was not instigated by village council," stated Minerva Mayor James Waller. "Brown Township's fire chief and trustees brought this to us. It's their township; we really didn't have a lot of choice."

Anyone with questions should contact the MVFD, 330-868-5193; BTVFD, 330-863-0176; or the village of Minerva, 330-868-7705.