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Warehouse fine
THE OWNER of a warehouse in Lancashire was fined £12,000 after he pleaded guilty to a string of offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order. Sefer Enver was ordered to pay £2,000 for each of six offences under the legislation, plus £2,250 costs. According to Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service, which brought the prosecution, the Britannia Mill in Blackburn had no working fire alarm, no emergency lighting, no fire risk assessment in place, and piles of flammable boxes blocking escape routes. Mr Enver was prosecuted after he ignored a previous enforcement notice.
Factory saved
A PLASTIC manufacturing factory in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, was saved by a sprinkler system on 26 December following an arson attack on the building. Around eight sprinkler heads activated to initially control and then fully extinguish the fire, which had been started in four separate locations – one seat was located up to 30m from the other three. When Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service attended the incident, no firefighting measures were necessary. The mains activated sprinkler system saved Hanmere Polythene Limited, which employs around 30 staff, from serious damage and probable total loss. The company resumed production soon after the Christmas period.
Hotel investigation
THE DEATHS of three people from a fire that destroyed a hotel in Newquay, Cornwall, on 18 August 2007 (see FP&FEJ, September 2007, p.3) are now being treated as murder. After five months of enquiries, police and fire investigators have confirmed that school teacher Peter Hughes, 43, his mother Monica, 86, and Joan Harper, 80, from Staffordshire were killed in a deliberate fire at the Penhallow Hotel. At the time of going to press, two men aged 44 and 21 had been arrested by Devon and Cornwall Police and were being held on suspicion of murder.
Calcutta blaze
HUNDREDS OF residents were evacuated on 12 January after a huge fire swept through the Burrabazar wholesale market in the Indian city of Calcutta. Some 250,000 shops were gutted, causing damages of about £25m. Firefighters used 40 fire appliances to tackle the blaze, which engulfed several tall buildings and a 14-storey shopping centre, which fire crews feared might collapse. No casualties were reported, despite shopkeepers risking their lives to salvage their stock. According to the Indian Market Traders Association, none of the shopkeepers were insured. The cause of the blaze is being investigated.
Fire checks faked
THE Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in the USA has ordered the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in southern California to step-up its health and safety culture. Following investigations, NRC discovered that a plant worker had faked the hourly fire watch rounds during the midnight shift over the period 2001-2006. Defending its position, the plant said that the missed rounds had a low safety significance, since other fire prevention measures were in place. However, NRC remains concerned at the lack of supervison during fire watches and has given the plant nine months to develop specialist training for its employees.
Procurement review
COMMUNITIES and Local Government is carrying out a review of the National Procurement Strategy for the Fire and Rescue Service 2005-2008 and how it is delivered and funded. The review started in December and is due to report in late March. It will examine the role, resources and performance of the national procurement agency, Firebuy Limited, and explore the future procurement strategy that is needed in England and Wales.
Appliance crash
JOHN NOBLE, a serving firefighter for 22 years, died in an on-duty road traffic accident on 23 January, while responding to a false alarm at a local primary school. The 46-year-old from Alloa, Central Scotland, died after the appliance he was driving came off the A91 near Tillicountry on a bend in the road – a known accident ‘black spot’ – and crashed into a tree. Three other firefighters were seriously injured. Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Service is investigating the incident.
New assessor scheme
WARRINGTON CERTIFICATION, in conjunction with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, has developed a scheme which provides the basis for entry onto a register of fire risk assessors. Developed to meet the requirements of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order in England and Wales, the scheme tests the competence of candidates carrying out fire risk assessments in accordance with the international standard for conformity assessment, ISO/IEC 1704: 2003: General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons.
More information is available from: www.warringtonfire.net
Emergency packs
HERTFORDSHIRE FIRE and Rescue Service’s welfare packs, which contain essential items needed by fire crews during prolonged attendance at flooding incidents, proved successful during the recent floods in South Yorkshire and Oxfordshire, when they were issued to crews operating high-volume pumps. Clothing items, to replace garments damaged by contaminated water, were particularly useful. Each pack comes in a sealed holdall and contains numerous items, including clothing – such as jogging trousers and T-shirts – and self-heating food cans.
Poster campaign
HAMPSHIRE FIRE and Rescue Service has distributed a series or hard-hitting posters in youth clubs and community centres around the county to help raise safety awareness among young people. The posters are the winning designs developed from a competition jointly sponsored by the brigade and the Prince’s Trust. Young people were asked to design fresh promotional material that could be used to target people of the same age. Issues covered in the posters ranged from promoting arson awareness, road safety, and reducing hoax calls.
Nigeria city fire
UP TO 36 people were feared dead and several shops were destroyed following a fire in Port Harcourt – Nigeria’s main southern city. The fire occurred when a speeding road tanker being chased by police crashed and spilled its cargo. Witnesses say the truck’s wheels burst, causing it to tip over and career off the road, discharging its fuel over cars and into shop doors before igniting in a fireball. Firefighters battled for hours to bring the blaze under control. Most of the victims were believed to be street vendors and shop workers. Police say about 15 vehicles were destroyed.
Firex South
FIREX SOUTH takes place at Sandown Park Exhibition Centre, Surrey, on 11-12 March. For the first time, the exhibition will also feature a fire safety conference. This will take the form of four three-hour modules, each looking at different areas of fire safety: compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order; emergency evacuation – in particular, complying with the Disability Discrimination Act; sprinkler management; and an Installers Market Master Class. The exhibition itself will feature international manufacturers and distributors of fire protection and prevention products showcasing their latest innovations.
More information is available from: www.firexroadshows.co.uk
Call for papers
THE BRITISH Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association (BAFSA) is calling for papers for its annual conference, which takes place at the Celtic Manor Hotel, Newport, South Wales on 20 November 2008. Papers should ideally focus on one of the following: new sprinkler technology; developments in coverage; unique sprinkler applications; and sprinklers as an aid to environmental protection. Submissions should be sent to e-mail: info@bafsa.org.uk by 15 February.
Enquiries relating to paper submissions should be directed to Stewart Kidd on tel: +44 (0)1353 741 099
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