Fire Incident Reporting in Missouri

Statutory Requirements and Authorization

dfs logo

The Missouri State Fire Marshal (MO SFM) and the Missouri Division of Fire Safety (The Division), under RSMo 320.202, are responsible for “Establishing and maintaining a statewide reporting system”.  This system must include, as a minimum, information as required by statue in RSMo 320.202 and RSMo 320.235.  The MO SFM and The Division uses and manages the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) program in Missouri as a part of meeting the records and reporting requirements established by the Missouri Legislature.

Due to the age of the NFIRS system and other considerations, the U.S. Fire Administration will be replacing NFIRS with a new program known as the National Emergency Response Information System (NERIS).  The changeover is scheduled to take place nationwide by January 2026.  Information about changeover from NFIRS to NERIS will be provided to Missouri Fire Services Agencies as it becomes available.

Reporting Guidelines

The Division, in accordance with USFA guidance, has requested that all users of the NFIRS 5.0 system meet the following guidelines for submission of incident data:

  • Fire Departments
    • Incident Reports: All fire departments are requested to submit or import their incident data files to NFIRS on a monthly basis.
    • No Activity Reports: If a fire department does not have any incident responses during a month, a report of "no activity" should be submitted for the reporting period.
  • States
    • States are advised to submit their data to the USFA on a quarterly basis.

Fire Department Reporting Participation

As of August 2024, there were 825 active fire departments registered with The Division in the state of Missouri. During calendar year 2023, 397 of those agencies submitted reports into the NFIRS system, representing 48.1% of Missouri fire departments.

The MO SFM and the Division would like to thank those Fire Service agencies which currently participate in NFIRS and strongly encourage all active fire departments in Missouri to submit their incident report data into the NFIRS program.  The submission of this information benefits all Missourians by creating a comprehensive “picture” of incidents to which fire departments are called to respond to.  This data can then be used in determine if equipment, personnel assignments, and resource allocations are adequate, and what changes may need to be considered.  It is also a valuable tool to assist the Fire Service and their response partners in creating emergency incident prevention and mitigation plans, as we continue “Fighting Fires with Facts”.

There are various reports on reporting and incident statistics available at the bottom of this webpage.  Additional reports may be available upon request to The Division.

National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)

US Fire Administration NFIRS logo

The National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) was created by the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) as a voluntary reporting standard that fire departments may use to uniformly report on the full range of their activities.  These activities include, but are not limited to, fires, medical emergencies, rescues, severe weather incidents, and natural and man-made disasters.  NFIRS 5.0 is the version of the program which is currently in use.

Fire departments in Missouri may enter their incident reports into NFIRS two ways; by using the eNFIRS web-based program online or by importing files generated from their Records Management System software program. The Division of Fire Safety does not currently allow software vendors to import data into NFIRS on behalf of their Missouri customers.  Accordingly, each Missouri fire department must have an authorized user to enter or import information into NFIRS.

eNFIRS

eNFIRS is the web-based tool which has replaced NFIRS downloadable software used for entering information into the NFIRS system.  The eNFIRS data entry tool is available for use by registered users to create or modify incident directly in the system.  Other applications and tools which are also available to registered users and state program managers for use in incident reporting and data management are listed below.  These applications and tools are available at no cost.

Available Application/Tool Use it for:

Yes

Bulk Import Utility (BIU)

Uploading data files for processing at the national level and running a daily report against the uploaded incidents.

Yes

Bulk Export Utility (BEU)

Exporting data from the national database.

Yes

Report Incidents

Entering NFIRS incidents via a web browser.

Yes

Change Password

Resetting or changing the password associated with your user account.

Yes

Forms-Based Incident Report (FBIR)

Generating a forms-based incident report for a single incident or multiple incidents saved in the national database.

Yes

Summary Output Reports Tool

Generating standard output reports on NFIRS data after entering report parameters and filters.

Yes

System Administration Tools

Managing incidents and groups, releasing and unreleasing incidents, and viewing logs of all actions performed.

Yes

NFIRS Data Warehouse

Generating standard reports and analytics.

Fire departments may also use compatible reporting software from an approved vendor, often for a fee, to manage their incident response data and reporting. A list of approved vendors can be obtained from the USFA website by clicking on the link below.

Fire departments which use eNIFRS enter their incident data directly into the system. Fire departments which use USFA approved vendor software must import their incident report data using the NFIRS Bulk Import Utility.  A link to the NFIRS home webpage is listed below. 

Once at the NFIRS webpage, click on the eNFIRS Applications link to access the login page.  There is also information via the other listed links to information about the system, coding help and training.  All of these resources are free to use.

NFIRS User Registration

The Division has implemented an NFIRS user registration process to help ensure that only authorized personnel are granted access to the database.  Please review the information provided below for the steps required to authorize and register personnel as NFIRS users for your agency.

  • Authorization letter
    • A letter, drafted on Agency letterhead, which includes the name, rank, phone number, email address, and account permissions level (see below) of each person being authorized to have an NFIRS account for your agency.
    • The letter must be signed and dated by the fire chief or their designee.  If the fire chief is one of the individuals being authorized, the letter must be signed by their supervisor (Board President, Mayor, City Manager, etc. or their designee).
    • A copy of the letter may be scanned and sent as a PDF or Word file to the email address provided below.  A picture of the signed letter will also be acceptable.  The letter may also be drafted and sent as an email, provided it contains all of the required information listed above.
  • NFIRS User account registration
    • The authorized user will need to sign up for a User account on the FEMA NFIRS website.  A link to the “New User Registration” webpage is provided below.  Please click on the link to access the page, complete all required fields in the application, and then click on the submit button.

NFIRS User Permission Levels

There are several levels of permissions that are available to Local Users of the agency account.  They are listed below.  User permission levels should be assigned by the person authorizing the user account.

  • Local Primary User
    • Read & Write Incident/FD
    • Bulk Import & Export
    • Program Administration (local agency only)
    • Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) Access
  • Local Assistant User
    • Read & Write Incident/FD
    • Bulk Import & Export
    • Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) Read Only Access
  • Local Date Entry User
    • Read & Write Incident/FD
    • Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) Read Only Access
  • Local RMS Import User
    • Bulk Import
    • Delete Incident/FD

If a user’s account permissions level is not assigned by the authorizing agent, the permissions level will be assigned as follows:

  • The highest-ranking authorized user (as specified in the authorization letter) will be designated as the Local Primary User.
  • The next two (2) subsequently registered users will be assigned Local Assistant User status.
  • Any subsequent user accounts will be assigned Local Data Entry User status.

Once the authorization letter has been received at the Division of Fire Safety, and the User account registration has been received, reviewed and approved, the User account will be authorized and activated. Any changes to the user’s account authorization or permissions level must be submitted in writing in the same form and manner as is required for the authorization letter (see above).

NFIRS New User Registration webpage link:
https://nfirs.fema.gov/NFIRSWeb/userRegisterNonPiv

Email address for Authorization Letter submission:
joshua.couture@dfs.dps.mo.gov

If you have any questions or need any assistance in the NFIRS User registration process, please contact the Missouri NFIRS State Program Manager, Joshua Couture, during normal business hours (8:00 am – 5:00 pm).

Missouri NFIRS State Program Manager contact information:

NFIRS Program User Assistance

The Division assists NFIRS users with resolving inactive or locked user account issues.  The NFIRS system requires users to login at least once every 45 days to maintain an active user account status.  If an account shows more than 45 consecutive days of inactivity the account is flagged as inactive and must be reactivated by the NFIRS state program manager.  NFIRS has also implemented a security feature which results in a User’s account being locked if there are three unsuccessful login attempts.  Contact with the state program manager is required to reactivate or unlock an account.

Missouri NFIRS State Program Manager contact information:

National Emergency Response Information System (NERIS)

NERIS logo

The USFA is leading a national effort to develop and launch a new interoperable fire information and analytics platform, known as the National Emergency Response Information System.  NERIS will empower the fire and emergency services community by equipping them with an empirical basis for decision-making. It will provide the community with reliable predictive analytics to support enhanced preparedness and response to all-hazard incidents, wildland urban interface events, community risk reduction efforts, climate change threats and associated resilience and mitigation efforts, and future pandemic emergency response resource preparedness.

The Division of Fire Safety will be working with the USFA to transition Missouri Fire Service agencies to the NERIS system by January 2026.  Information on the changeover will be provided as it becomes available.  A link to the NERIS home page is provided below.  The system is still in the process of being designed and implemented.  Please visit the USFA NERIS webpage for more information about the program.

Missouri Incident Statistical Data

The Missouri State Fire Marshal and the Division of Safety believe that statistical data is a valuable tool which should be used to help guide decision-making processes in the Missouri Fire Service.  Accordingly, it is imperative that accurate data is gathered and disseminated in a timely manner from as many partner agencies as possible.  If your agency is not currently submitting reports to NFIRS, please contact the Division of Fire Safety for assistance in determining what is needed to begin doing so.

The reports provided below offer a glimpse into the activities of our Fire Service partner agencies across Missouri.  Additional information, statistics and reports may be available upon written request to the Division of Fire Safety. 

Division of Fire Safety Contact Information

Annual Summary Reports

Monthly Reporting Participation Reports