At a time when we are hearing more and more politically correct ‘world gone mad’ statements, we are extremely concerned about recommendations being made that people should not attempt to use fire extinguishers, or should ignore fire extinguishers or should remove fire extinguishers.
Portable fire extinguishers are intended to prevent small fires from developing into larger fires and it is reported that fire extinguishers, annually, save over £5 million in terms of fire resources and save the UK economy over £500 million. Also, it is estimated that 1,629 injuries and the loss of 24 lives are prevented annually.
A comprehensive survey in 2003 established that:
in 80% of cases of fire, portable equipment successfully extinguished the fires and in 75% of those cases, the Fire Brigade was not required to attend.
A recent survey established that:
in 88% of incidents, portable fire extinguishers successfully extinguished the fires and in 75% of those incidents, the Fire & Rescue Service (FRS) were not called.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, which came into force in October 2006, requires premises to be equipped with adequate fire fighting appliances which must be provided and maintained “in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair” in order to comply with the above regulation and to satisfy the requirements of the Health & Safety Executive
Portable fire extinguishers are a common sense, economic solution to prevent small fires developing to a size which threatens life, property and business continuity.
Extracted from the Fire Industries Association Newsletter