Radio fire and security company EMS has launched an app for smartphones to guide users through its products.

Firefighters are planning to campaign ‘strongly’ for the inclusion of sprinklers in plans for a new skyscraper in Portsmouth.

The 33-storey building, known as the Blade, is set to accommodate students from Portsmouth University.
However, long-running talks between Hampshire Fire and Rescue and the developer Watkin-Jones over whether sprinklers will be installed inside the skyscraper have broken down, with the developer confirming it will not carry out the works.

A statement released by the fire service following a meeting last week said: “We have strongly recommended to the developer to include a sprinkler system in the design to ensure the safety of the future occupants and we have put forward a compelling case to support our view.  This and other fire safety provisions are especially relevant when we know that the future occupants are likely to be students – a known high risk group.”

Under current building regulations, sprinklers have to be installed into new high rise blocks of flats exceeding 30 metres. However, Portsmouth University, which has commissioned the build,  says that because the Blade will be halls of residence and managed accommodation, it will fall under the category ‘hotels and other use’.

Area manager for community safety at Hampshire Fire and Rescue service, Mick Crennell said, “Although the building’s design complies with current building regulations for a halls of residence, such buildings were, historically, not built to a height of 110 metres which provides additional safety complications both in terms of mass evacuation and for fire fighting.

“As such our considered and professional opinion remains that the building would no doubt be safer if sprinklers were incorporated into the building design at this stage and it would reduce the size and impact of any fire, improve business continuity and the recovery phase after an incident.”

In addition, Mr Crennell said that the fire service were consultated ‘far too late’ but would continue to campaign and lobby strongly for the provision of sprinklers.

Speaking earlier this year, John Turner, pro-vice chancellor of the university, said stringent evacuation procedures would be in place:  “The building will not be fitted with a sprinkler system.  Stringent evacuation procedures will be in place in the new building.  In the event of a fire an automatic alarm is triggered and on detection of a confirmed fire, there is immediate evacuation of the building to a place of safety.”

A large Sony distribution warehouse has partially collapsed as a result of a blaze which, along with many others in the capital last night, is believed to have started as a result of riots and looting.

Last night London Fire Brigade experienced 15 times the normal levels of calls, the busiest night “in recent memory”.

The two-storey distribution warehouse in Enfield is believed to have caught fire at around midnight. Around 55 firefighters tackled the blaze throughout the night, and are crews are expected to remain on the scene for the rest of the day (9 August).

Around 170 people in a nearby hotel were evacuated, and residents nearby were advised to keep their doors and windows shut against the large amounts of black smoke generated by burning plastic.

Dramatic pictures of Sony fire from the Mirror website

Actor and comedian Rowan Atkinson is being treated in hospital for ‘minor injuries’ after a crash in his Mclaren F1 supercar, which then caught fire.

Police and firefighters said the incident happened at around 7.30pm last night in on the A605 near Haddon services. It is thought the £650,000 car hit a tree and then caught fire.

“This was a fire affecting a Mclaren F1 which was caused by a single vehicle road traffic collision,” said Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service. “The driver of the vehicle was out of the car before the arrival of firefighters.”

Crews extinguished the fire using one hose reel.

Mr Atkinson recently drove the fastest lap on BBC TV’s Top Gear in the programme’s Star in a Reasonably Priced Car feature.

A care home has failed to establish that management arrangements could compensate for the absence of self-closers on bedroom doors, according to a determination under the Fire Safety Order by the secretary of state.

The care home argued that it could compensate for the absence of self-closers – part of the building’s design which was accepted by approved inspectors in 2003 – with enhanced staff intervention procedures, including the closing of any open bedroom doors in the event of a fire.

The secretary of state, however, on the advice of the government’s chief fire and rescue adviser, ruled that the fire and rescue enforcing authority was right to insist on appropriate self-closing or hold-open devices on the doors, in order to provide quick and safe evacuation in the event of danger.

The determination also rejects the approach taken by the responsible person in selecting parts of different standards to justify their approach.

“Standards are written to provide a comprehensive assessment of the risk and identify adequate protection measures for a defined risk,” says the chief fire and rescue adviser in the determination. “To take sections of differing standards and use them to form one assessment is an erroneous approach, as individual sections in guidance documents rely on assumptions in other sections of that document which may differ from other guidance.”

The care home’s case was also rejected in spite of smoke flow zone modelling which tried to suggest that smoke conditions would be tenable – even if a bedroom fire door were left open.

“The responsible person should have recognised there is established good practice designed to provide adequate protection in this situation: the use of self-closing devices on the bedroom fire doors,” concludes the advice. “This is proportionate and its use is likely to enable persons to evacuate the premises as quickly and safely as possible.

“It is therefore my view that the requirement to fit appropriate self-closing devices to the bedroom fire doors is necessary to safeguard the safety of relevant persons, and is the appropriate technical solution for remedying the established failure to comply with article 14(2)(b) of the Order.”

Commenting on the determination, Tom Welland, commercial director of Fireco who manufacture hold-open devices, said:

“It’s vital all owners and operators of care homes are aware of this important ruling, as it underlines the dangers of wedging open fire doors. Quite clearly enforcement officers will take a very dim view of any care home that continues with this dangerous practice.

“Using staff to ensure doors are closed in an emergency situation is not an action that can be relied upon, so automatic devices must be used.”

Determinations are made under article 36 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, where the enforcing authority and the responsible person for the premises are in dispute over technical fire safety issues, and are based on the particular circumstances of each case.

Download the full determination

A new guide on electrical safety in communal areas of residential properties has been published by the Electrical Safety Council.

The guide – produced in conjunction with the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA) – aims to raise awareness of the legal obligations relating to electrical safety in the common parts of residential buildings by providing guidance and advice on areas such as staircases, hallways, landings and boiler rooms.

Phil Buckle, director general of the Electrical Safety Council, said:

“In partnership with ARMA we undertook a survey of their members. It revealed that 84% of respondents felt that guidance on inspection and testing in communal areas would be beneficial to electrical safety in areas accessible to residents, staff and others visiting the property.”

Downoload Electrical Safety in Communal Areas of Residential Properties

The Health and Safety Executive has ordered two companies to pay fines for safety breaches following a serious chemical fire in Crewe.

Waste recycling company, Greenway Environmental Ltd and waste shredder manufacturer, Pakawaste Ltd, were ordered to pay a total of £224,530 at Chester Crown Court on 28 July.

It followed an investigation into the explosion and fire at Aztec Aerosols on the Gateway Industrial Estate on 4 June 2007.

The court heard the fire was caused by an explosion in an aerosol-shredding unit and had to be put out by more than 100 firefighters. The unit had been designed, manufactured and supplied by Pakawaste, and was being used on Greenway’s premises.

“Many of the aerosols shot into the air and onto nearby roads after setting alight, and neighbouring buildings were damaged,” The HSE said. ”A 200-metre exclusion zone was set up while fire crews brought the blaze under control, and explosions of drums and cylinders could be heard more than half a mile away.”

The HSE investigation found the machine had not been designed to safely shred waste containers containing residues of flammable liquids and gases, with unsafe operating procedures in place. It also concluded that it should have been operated in a segregated area away from where flammable substances were being stored.

Greenway pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 by failing to ensure the safety of workers. It was fined £37,500 and ordered to pay costs of £50,000.

Pakawaste pleaded guilty to breaching Section 6(1)(a) by failing to ensure the shredding unit was designed and constructed to be safe. It was fined £50,000, with costs of £87,030

Firefighters managed to save thousands of young chicks from a blaze at a wildfowl and nature reserve in Wakefield, Leeds.

Fire broke out last Monday (25 July) in the undergrowth of Haw Park Woods. Around 35 firefighters fought the blaze at its height. It took around 36 hours for firefighters to extinguish.

According to the park rangers, the lives of chicks from a number of different bird species had been a risk not just from fire but from smoke. The actions of West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service had saved thousands of birds, they said.

Another, smaller fire, affected the same area on Saturday.

Both fires are now under investigation.

A new guidance document on fire safety for blocks of flats has been published.

Fire Safety Guidance for Purpose Built Blocks of Flats, now available for download, will run alongside existing advice on housing.

The 192–page document covers topics ranging from escape routes, door insulation and sprinklers, to firefighter access, the needs of older and disabled people, and combating vandals and arsonists. As well as general apartment complexes, it also covers flats in sheltered housing schemes and accommodation for students or workers.

The document’s release follows a meeting last year between the Local Government Regulation body (formerly LACORS), the Department for Local Government and Communities (CLG), the Chief Fire Officers Association, the Tenant Services Authority and social and private accommodation providers.

Commissioned by CLG, the project was led by the Local Government Improvement and Development body. The guidance, drafted by CS Todd & Associates, aims to follow a similar format to existing guidance on fire safety provisions for certain types of existing housing.

Councillor David Parsons, chairman of the Local Government Group’s Environment and Housing Programme Board, said: “Clear and comprehensive fire safety guidance can mean the difference between life and death. This innovative project brought together all aspects of the housing world to share experience and expertise and has resulted in common sense advice. This will be of great use to landlords and fire officers, helping to keep people as safe as possible and protect property.

“The existing guidance covers most types of property very well, but it was never meant for blocks of flats and it became apparent some landlords were unsure of their legal responsibilities in such buildings. This was compounded by fire risk assessors being unclear about the level of investigation required when carrying out risk assessments.

“These extra guidelines should resolve these issues and help make sure everyone involved in the housing sector knows exactly what they have to do so lives aren’t needlessly put at risk.”

Recommendations include:

• Vigilance against people smoking in communal areas and providing cigarette receptacles by entrances
• Effective locks on doors and windows, CCTV systems and, where appropriate, caretaker/concierge presence  to  protect against vandals and arsonists
• Ensuring escape routes and exits are well signed and lit, clear of clutter and have as few ‘dead ends’ as possible
• Monitoring modifications of flats by tenants which may affect fire safety
• Promoting the ‘stay put’ principle where appropriate for residents whose flat is not on fire, rather than instigating a full evacuation of the building
• Regular inspection of electrics, heating, ventilation and lightening protection systems
• Making sure firefighters have easy access to buildings and internal firefighting equipment.

To download the free guidance, click here.

Residents have waged war over the installation of new fire doors they say are unsafe.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council is in the process of installing more than 800 fire doors across at its apartment blocks. It is part of a £1.9 million housing programme that will see 1,100 fire doors fitted across the city.

However, the tenants of Honeywall House, Penkhull House and Southern House, in Penkhull, have refused council contractors access to their homes to put in new front doors.

According to local newspaper, This is Staffordshire, tenants said the council has supplied “shoddy” materials and the new doors can easily be forced open.

Concerns were addressed at a meeting between the two parties last week.

Graham Barrett, aged 60, of Southern House, said: “The council has spent very little money to buy cheap, shoddy material.

“They have already installed fire doors, but now they want to replace our front doors with the same type of material.

“But the new doors are not as good as the ones we already have. They are not going to be secure. Someone could easily force them open.

Writing on a comment forum for the paper after the meeting, blogger RubyThursday said: “I attended the meeting and was shocked by the attitude and certain comments made by representatives of the council. we were left with the ditinct [sic] message that as council tennants [sic] we should be greatful for the ‘inferior’ doors because we don’t have to pay for them. they agreed however that they would not have them in their own homes.”

A spokesman for the council told info4fire the move did not come about due to a visit from the local fire service, but a risk assessment.

Councillor Gwen Hassall, Stoke-on-Trent City Council cabinet member for housing and neighbourhoods, said: “Fire doors are being installed in properties across the city following a risk assessment. We recently met with residents and have taken on board the comments. We will continue to work with residents on the program of improvements.The fire doors are a legal requirement.”

A fire service is warning of the risk of fires breaking out in towels and linen that have absorbed essential oils.

Wiltshire Fire and Rescue service has put out the warning following a number of fires in launderettes, salons and homes, including one at a beauty therapy room in Swindon College which was badly damaged in a blaze.

“We’ve seen fires in tumble dryers, linen baskets and airing cupboards where towels that have had oil on them have caught alight,” explained technical fire safety group manager, Julian Parsons. “The problem only seems to arise when the wash cycle has been at a cool heat. It is now common to have washes at lower temperatures – sometimes as low as 15°C. When the wash has been at 40°C or above, the oil residue is more likely to be safely broken down by the washing detergents.”

He added: “At lower temperatures, the oil isn’t removed from the fabric. When the material is then heated in the tumble dryer, the residue can self-combust either in the dryer or when the linen is stacked.”

A new row has broken out between London Underground bosses and the RMT union over a fire alert at Euston station earlier this month.

In the alert on 12 July, staff evacuated passengers following reports of smoke coming in from the mainline concourse shortly after midnight. After an extensive search, London Fire Brigade gave the station the all-clear at around 1.30 am.

In a previous incident at the station last July, the union said that detection equipment had failed, a claim denied by Transport for London. On this occasion RMT general secretary, Bob Crow, claimed the public address system did not work, meaning staff had to hurry around with megaphones to get everyone out.

“Almost exactly a year on from last year’s fire in an escalator machine room, Euston station has had yet another reminder of the constant risks to safety and the need for staff on the Underground,” said Mr Crow.

“This is a wake-up call for Boris Johnson and Transport for London just a year away from the Olympics.

“With the ever-present risk and the problem of unreliable detection and evacuation equipment, the only thing that stands between safety and a major catastrophe is the presence of staff.”

In response, a spokesperson for Transport for London said:

“On the day that London had marked with excitement as a year to go until the start of the Olympic Games, the RMT leadership have chosen to pointlessly scaremonger, despite knowing full well that there are no plans to reduce station staff at Euston or elsewhere.

“The use of staff communicating on the ground is standard practice to ensure that passengers, including tourists whose first language may not be English, the elderly and those who may be hard of hearing have understood the direction being given to evacuate the station.”