Alabama Fire Marshal's Office

National Fire Incident Reporting System, which has been designed as a tool for fire departments nationwide to report and maintain computerized records of fires and other fire department incidents in a uniform manner. NFIRS 5.0 was developed by the United States Fire Administration  (USFA) in partnership with the National Fire Information Council (NFIC) .

Participation in Alabama is not state-mandated. However, it is the only data collection system in the state that provides valuable information on fire and non-fire incidents, including loss of life and property.

 Alabama Code Title 36. Public Officers and Employees (§ 36-19-6)  mandates that each fire department operated by the state, a city, city and county, fire protection district, organized fire company, or other public or private entity which provides fire protection, shall furnish information and data to the Alabama State Fire Marshal’s Office (ASFM) relating to each fire which occurs within his or her area of jurisdiction. Using NFIRS 5.0 format enables the Fire Service to collect computerized records of fires and other fire department incidents to examine trends on a local, state, and national level. The resulting information can be used to accurately budget and pursue strategic and organizational planning activities, such as training and risk reduction programs.

Alabama accepts data in NFIRS 5.0-compliant format. Your fire department will need to decide whether you will be using an NFIRS compliant third-party vendor software program, or the free eNFIRS web-based reporting tool offered by the USFA.

Choosing a third-party vendor: To find a software vendor, we suggest that you check with other fire departments or organizations to find out what they are using and how well it works for them. Or you can click here  to view the Federal list of active NFIRS software vendors. Up-front and extended costs for third-party vendor software vary depending on the package and the level of service provided. If your department already has an automated records management system, you may want to find out if your software has a built-in or compatible NFIRS 5.0 compliant component available.

eNFIRS Web-Based Reporting Tool: eNFIRS is completely functional, but it does not contain certain special features that your department may need, such as CAD integration. As such, eNFIRS may not be the best option for fire departments with a high call volume. To register for eNFIRS, follow the eNFIRS Free Software Users instruction. 

Incidents are due on a monthly basis by the 15th of the following month.

If your fire department uses the free eNFIRS software to complete your incident reports, no further action is needed to submit your data.  For fire departments that use a third-party vendor, you will need to register for an eNFIRS account by following the Vendor Software Users instructions. You must submit your NFIRS 5.0 data directly to the NFIRS national database using the eNFIRS Bulk Import Utility (BIU).

You may direct any questions relating to the Alabama NFIRS Program to Jebb Harrison, at Jebb.Harrison@insurance.alabama.gov or by telephone at (334) 241-4166.

Yes. The statistical reports will be based on NFIRS 5.0 data that was submitted to the State and validated. Requests should be submitted to Jebb Harrison, at Jebb.Harrison@insurance.alabama.gov.

You will need to decide whether you will be using an NFIRS-compliant third-party vendor software program, or the free eNFIRS software offered by the USFA.

You can get demographic data from the U.S. Census Bureau's website. For census tract information, visit the U.S. Census Bureau Census Tract Street Locator.

All documentation and guidelines (i.e., the NFIRS 5.0 Complete Reference Guide, Coding help, etc.) are available here.

Fire Department Identification number. FDID numbers are assigned to fire departments by the ASFM's office to be used for incident reporting for their jurisdiction.

Contact the ASFM's office to request a FDID.

The ASFM is dedicated to maintaining the most current information regarding fire departments in the FDID database. If there is a need to update your FDID information or your department has merged with another department, please notify Jebb Harrison at Jebb.Harrison@insurance.alabama.gov or by telephone at (334) 241-4166.