This indicator is part of Sustainable built environment.

Indicator description:

This indicator measures the number of Albuquerque structure fires, residential and non-residential, where the cause was determined to be a probable building code-related issue. Building code violations contributing to ignition are electrical and mechanical failures, short circuits and arcs, leaks or breaks, worn out equipment and worn insulation, automatic control failures, and construction and installation deficiencies. Comparable data are not collected nationally or by benchmark Southwest cities. One national study conducted in 2000, however, found 23.4% of all structure fires were caused by heating equipment and electrical distribution systems, the two causes most closely related to building codes. In Albuquerque, the percentage from all code-related causes ranged between 11% and 20.4% from FY/05 through FY/08. Data on the total number of structures in Albuquerque are not available. However, the American Community Survey estimates there were 227,874 housing units in Albuquerque 2007. There were 43 structure fires with a probable code-related cause in FY 2007. Code-related fires can, of course, occur in both residential and non-residential structures. Even if all 43 fires occurred in residential structures, this would still result in a rate of approximately one code-related fire per 5,300 structures.

Why is this indicator relevant?

The safety of built environments is largely dependent on compliance with applicable building codes. When properties are not constructed or maintained in accordance with those codes, people and property are at risk. Measuring the number of fires with possible code-related causes provides insight into the safety of Albuquerque’s built environments.

Data Sources:
Albuquerque Fire Department, Fiscal Years 2005 to 2008; American Community Survey, US Census Bureau, 2002-2007; All Structure Fires in 2000, National Fire Data Center, U.S. Fire Administration, Federal Emergency Management Administration, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, June 2004.

What can we tell from the data?

• The trend in the number of probable code-related structure fires is increasing slightly, FY/05 to FY/08.
• The number of code-related structure fires is extremely small in relation to the large number of structures in Albuquerque. The probability of having a code-related structure fire is also extremely small, approximately 1 chance in 5,300 based on 2007 data.
• Although comparable data for other cities are not available, information from one study would suggest that Albuquerque’s rate of probable code-related fires is lower than the national rate.

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