Ever since its discovery fire has been used to enrich human lives providing warmth, light, and safety among its many utilities. For all of the good that fire can do, it also has the wild potential to destroy indiscriminately. For all of our modern knowledge and technology, fire still causes significant property damage and loss of life every year. Kitchens, hotels, and hospitals are some of the areas where fire can spread the easiest; here are some facts on the biggest fire hotspots across the nation.
Kitchens
Since fire lead to the introduction of cooked foods, it seems to be a no-brainer that kitchens are at an increased risk for fire damage. As an occupational hazard, kitchens must have adequate fire suppression systems — yet not all fires are treated equally.
There are three different classes of fire depending on the fuel source and which elements are involved. Class A fires deal with paper, wood, trash, and other combustibles; Class B fires involve flammable or combustible liquids; and Class C fires involve some sort of electrical equipment. In kitchens with large commercial oven ranges it is shown that non-chemical based suppression systems, such as fire sprinkler systems, operate effectively in 96% of cases. Some kitchens may require chemical systems which stop flames once the concentration of carbon dioxide in the air dips below 20%.
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Hotels
Hotels and motels have an obligation to providing their guests with a safe and enjoyable stay. Yet every year there are an estimated 15 deaths and 150 injuries caused by hotel and motel fires. In total, these fires result in $76 million in property loss every year. To decrease the loss of life, many hotels have safe evacuation plans for guests. These plans typically only work if the hotel has fire protection services equipped with early-warning software that can anticipate a fire before it spreads.
Hospitals
Due to the surplus of electrical equipment, hospitals and other health care facilities are at an increased risk for fire damage. Between 2006 and 2010, fire departments in the United States responded to an average of around 6,240 structure fires in health care properties each year. Dry chemical suppression systems are typically used in health care facilities, as the water could cause more harm than good due to respirators, heart monitors, and other sensitive electrical equipment that keeps patients well.
Fire Protection Services
Many organizations have turned to third party fire protection services to ensure that their buildings are equipped with the latest and most advanced commercial fire alarm systems. Such fire protection services know the anatomy of a fire, so to speak, and are able to strategically place sprinklers and other fire suppression systems in key areas around the building to simultaneously discourage the spread of a fire and work to put it out before it becomes an out of control inferno. Studies have found that sprinkler systems operate in 91% of all reported structure fires that were large enough to activate them; the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has no record of a fire killing more than two individuals in a completely sprinklered building so long as the system was operating properly. In conjunction with advanced early warning and fire monitoring systems, fire protection services can help to reduce injuries, deaths, and property damages by at least 50%. Fire gives us warmth, safety, and light, but only if under our control; let fire protection services ensure that fires stay tamed.