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Bill Hewitt, Fire Safety Director at Newflame advises, “The
occurrence of arson can be reduced and its effects controlled if
consideration is given in advance to identifying potential threats
and effective protection measures. An arson risk assessment should
be carried out as part of the Fire Risk Assessment (FRA) procedure
required by the Regulatory Reform Order (FSO) 2005. In every
business there should be a named Responsible Person, who is made
accountable for fire safety for their company; including protection
from arson attack. This person should be trained and competent to
conduct an Arson Risk Assessment.”
Steps of an FRA include studying the
vulnerability of the building, identifying both the fire hazards and
those who could start a fire in order to reduce the threat of arson,
removing potential sources such as flammable liquids and checking
security measures, particularly at night time. Fire safety measures
need to be considered to reduce the speared of potential fire and
risks need to be allocated and recorded so that a business
continuity plan can be prepared, which is reviewed periodically as
the business changes over time.
All the measures taken to protect a
building from accidental fire have a part to play in reducing the
effects of a fire which is started deliberately. These include both
passive fire protection; dividing the building into individual fire
compartments, using materials of suitable fire resisting properties
and active fire protection; providing appropriate, cost effective
equipment to detect and fight fires. Both passive and active fire
protection measures require regular inspection and maintenance.
Service contracts need to be set up with accredited contractors for
the installed equipment and the fire safety manager should also
ensure that regular inspections are made of escape routes, fire
doors and housekeeping standards and that a suitable record of these
inspections are kept.
Newflame’s Bill Hewitt adds, “Good
staff and community relations will enhance the degree of
co-operation from the workforce with regard to protecting the
business from an arson attack, either from an outside source or from
a member of staff. Close liaison also needs to be maintained with
the fire brigade, police and insurers in order to take all practical
measure to reduce the likelihood of an arson attack. It is not
unusual for a major arson fire to be proceeded by one or two smaller
attacks; any fire should be carefully investigated so that lessons
may be learned and action taken to avoid a recurrence.”
January 2009 - Peterborough UK
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