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FROZEN FOOD retailer, Iceland Foods, has been ordered to pay a total of £28,500 in fines and costs after admitting that it failed to comply with fire safety legislation.
The breaches were discovered following a fire at the Iceland store in Bulwell, Nottingham, in September 2006.
The electrical fire started on the ground floor of the store, and six members of staff on the first floor evacuated to the roof, where they discovered the vertical escape ladder was locked. They ultimately managed to break the lock with a crowbar and all but one climbed to safety. Fire crews rescued the remaining staff member, who was unable to descend the ladder.
An investigation by officers from Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue uncovered a number of fire safety contraventions, which led to the successful prosecution.
Iceland Foods pleaded guilty to four charges relating to: failure to properly manage fire safety measures; failure to properly instruct and train staff; failure to keep and maintain emergency exit routes clear; and means of escape that could not be quickly and safely used. The company was ordered to pay £15,000 in fines and £13,500 in costs.
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue’s head of fire protection, Mark Huckerby, commented: ‘Companies have an obligation to their staff, customers and visitors to keep their premises safe, and Iceland Foods clearly failed to do this. The fact that no-one was injured does not detract from the potential seriousness of this incident, and when we investigated, we were very concerned to find basic failures.
‘I am pleased with the outcome, and am sure that Iceland Foods will continue to tighten up on fire safety procedures at all of its stores as a consequence of this’.
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