Industry News

Nearly one-third (29 percent) of U.S. home fires that begin with Christmas trees occurs in January. With this potential fire hazard in mind, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) strongly encourages everyone to remove Christmas trees from their homes promptly after the holiday season. “Christmas trees are combustible items that become increasingly flammable as they continue to dry out,” said Lorraine Carli, NFPA’s Vice President of Outreach and Advocacy. recycling p...

The Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) welcomes the release of the report following the first phase of the Public Inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire, and will comment further once the findings have been examined in greater depth. It is well documented and understood that the major failing of the building was due to the cladding material, and the ASFP looks forward to phase 2 of the Public Inquiry when the circumstances that led to its inclusion in the building will be determine...

Dry fire sprinkler systems have been around for a long time and are used to protect unheated warehouses and structures, where freezing temperatures could cause the pipes in a wet pipe sprinkler system to burst. They are also increasingly being used in areas containing sensitive or very expensive contents due to the fears that leaking fire sprinkler pipes could cause. As the use of dry pipe systems has become more widespread, concerns regarding the impact of corrosion common in dry pipe systems...

Green Builder Media and NFPA announce the publication of a new e-book on wildfire mitigation, Enough is Enough. The follow-up to NFPA’s popular 2015 e-book, Design With Fire In Mind: Three Steps to a Safer New Home, Enough is Enough details what needs to be done to help prevent loss of property and lives to fire. Between the publications  of both e-books, wildfires have continued to make headline news across the country, including back-to-back record-setting wildfire seasons in Calif...

The arrival of winter and the festive season brings added fire and security risks at home and work. Chubb Fire & Security wants to help keep families, their homes and belongings safe and secure. Chubb is part of Carrier, a global provider of innovative heating, ventilating, air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security and building automation technologies. According to Fire & rescue incident statistics: England, year ending June 2019, there were 268 fire-related fatalities from...

With the acquisition of Drew Marine’s Fire Safety and Rescue (FSR) division, VIKING increases its global volume, reach and technical competencies for marine firefighting equipment services (MFS). VIKING Life-Saving Equipment - the global safety solutions and service provider, announced its acquisition of Drew Marine’s Fire Safety and Rescue (FSR) division this month. “Welcoming on board one of the top three marine fire service providers in the world, the acquisition is in alig...

The Electronic Security Association (ESA) is now accepting entries to its 2020 Youth Scholarship Program — a philanthropic endeavor that aims to support the futures of sons and daughters of first responders. The electronic security industry works intimately with the public safety sector. Police, firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs offer a vital service to our communities, in our shared goal of keeping people, places and property safe. To give back to this group that so positively impacts t...

The London Fire Commissioner, Dany Cotton, has announced she will be stepping down from her position at London Fire Brigade on 31 December. The Commissioner had previously announced in June that she intended to retire from the fire and rescue service in April 2020, but in consultation with City Hall it has been agreed that Dany will bring that forward to the end of this year to enable a timely handover to the next Commissioner, as the Brigade works to urgently deliver the recommendations of the...

A Cambridgeshire firefighter becomes the first female at March Fire Station to be the officer in charge of emergency incidents and qualified to drive a fire engine. Firefighter Vicky Vata was successful at the crew’s drill night on late November 2019 where she was assessed by officers from Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service’s training center. The qualification, known as ‘safe to ride’ means Vicky will ride a fire engine as the officer in charge of an incident, taking...

Responding to a terrible student accommodation fire in Bolton, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has called for a complete overhaul of UK fire safety and condemned cuts to fire and rescue services. Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said: "My congratulations go to the crews on the ground who did amazing work in incredibly difficult circumstances. This terrible fire highlights the complete failure of the UK’s fire safety system. It’s deeply troubling to see fire spread rapidly up a build...

ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions UK & Ireland is advising fire safety professionals on the importance of properly certified hardware and training, following warnings from experts in fire safety law that they may now be deemed responsible for any breaches. Liability for fire safety breaches is being increasingly pushed down from building owners and occupiers to those that have been consulted, assessed and advised on the appropriate fire safety solutions for a site. Should these products fail to...

As Electrical Fire Safety Week is upon every one for another year, it’s a good time to share some top tips to help keep you safe from the risk of electrical fire. Here are some good advice to last all year round: Don’t charge laptops and mobile phones on flammable materials e.g. beds or cushions. When charging, ensure they are on a suitable flat surface, and don’t charge overnight. Don’t overload plug sockets, and check cables regularly to ensure they are not worn, fr...

A modern-day, busy warehouse is rife with potential fire risks and hazards. No matter what sector the warehouse operates in, such as logistics, storage, or manufacturing, it’s vital to do everything one can to minimize fire risks as much as possible. To help people do just that, Total Fire Group has compiled the most common causes of fires in warehouses and what people can do to minimize those hazards. Many warehouse fires begin with faulty electrical equipment, exposed wires, or lightin...

Fires in modern data centers are a harsh reality. Such fires result, not only in serious amounts of direct damage, but also in costly indirect damage, including downtime associated with server outages and cleanup from the fire. These fires are not only dangerous, they can disrupt modern life. In 2017, a fire at a large data center in Azerbaijan took almost seven hours to extinguish. During that time, the entire country lost computer access to the Internet, with access to the network available o...

Cold Cut Systems announces that Bernie Higgins, Head of Cold Cut Academy and one of our UK staff, takes over as Chair of FIRESA Council. FIRESA Council is one of seven councils under the aegis of the Fire Industry Association, the largest fire protection and firefighting trade association in the UK with over 850 members. Bernie is a former Principal Officer in London Fire Brigade and brings his experience of the UK Fire and Rescue sector as well as his commercial knowledge to the role.

Avon Fire and Rescue Service (AF&RS) has taken part in a series of multi-agency training exercises to tests its chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear response. The three training sessions, which fell under CBRNe, were designed to test how emergency services from across the region responded to incidents such as chemical spills and contamination. Training exercises These scenarios involved staff from Avon and Somerset Police, South Western Ambulance Service, Devon & Somerset Fire...

The risk of further residential fire tragedies, following the fatal Grenfell Tower fire, has been raised by leading engineering services trade association ECA, in its response to the ‘Raising the Bar’ consultation. In the aftermath of the blaze at the Grenfell Tower high-rise block in West London, several inquiries have concluded that installer competency is fundamental to public safety. This is particularly the case in buildings such as residential tower blocks, care homes and hospi...

When a fire starts, every second counts. Fire extinguishers can help save lives when used quickly and effectively. Yet an astonishing 70% of fire extinguisher owners say they would not be comfortable using an extinguisher in the event of a fire according to recent research. For this reason, First Alert and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) have developed a new fire extinguisher training course for volunteer fire departments nationwide, supplemented by an extinguisher donation program fo...

On April 29-30, 2020, the Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI) will host the 32nd Annual National Fire and Emergency Services Symposium and Dinner in Washington, DC. Once again, the annual tribute to the nation’s fire service is expected to draw over 1,500 fire and emergency services leaders from across the country. They will attend seminars, conduct meetings with their members of Congress, and network with their colleagues. At the conclusion of the two-day event, they will assem...

The FPA Managing Director Jonathan O’Neill thought it was important to chair the Fire Sector Summit to stress his feelings towards the current state of the fire industry. He opened the event commending the Fire and Rescue Services but commented “Please don’t see Sir Martin [Moore-Bick]’s comments and recommendations [regarding the Grenfell Tower fire] as an attack. See them as an opportunity.” “If Dame Judith Hackitt gets her way you will likely to be asked t...

Europe’s pioneer door provider, Hörmann UK, has launched its new FlexFire Protection Curtain, specifically designed to provide the construction and other industrial sectors with unrivalled smoke protection in the event of a fire. Equipped with an intelligent FSA-FLEXControl hold-open device as standard, the curtain closes reliably if smoke develops. When combined with optical smoke detectors that monitor the door area, the hold-open device is compliant with the requirements outlined...

The concept of firefighter cancer prevention has been the main topic these days around the fire service. The fire apparatus industry is taking a proactive stance when it comes to firefighter cancer prevention by designing new apparatus that makes it easier for firefighters to decontaminate after a fire. Not only does it make sense for firefighters to clean their gear after a fire but also to keep their apparatus clean as well. In the long run it may certainly be harmful to themselves while retu...

Central Pierce Fire & Rescue stepped away from a long history of purchasing fire apparatus from a sole manufacturer. With this step, the department chose KME Fire Apparatus and Cascade Fire & Emergency, WA to provide eight KME Custom Pumpers engineered to the department's exact specifications. Paul Stueve, Asst. Chief of Logistics for Central Pierce Fire & Rescue states, “Cascade Fire and KME have provided an experience of responsiveness, a willingness to meet high expectations...

Using water to fight a fire is as old as time. Thankfully the days of the bucket brigade are over and modern firefighters have all the tools they need to combat any fire. A key part of firefighting technology is the flow meter. To show how important flow meters are one can read the report from the Fire Protection Research Foundation; titled Evaluation of Fire Flow Methodologies. As stated in the report: “In order to effectively fight a fire, the water supply available must be adequate for...

The Canadian Commission on Building and Fire Codes (CCBFC) invites organizations and its members to take part in the fall 2019 public review from October 22 to December 23, 2019. Purpose of the review The responsible standing committee will consider each comment in its recommendations on the proposed changes The purpose of the public review is to provide users of the model codes and stakeholders with a detailed look at the changes being considered and to seek comments as t...

BAFE endorses the response to the Grenfell Review by the Fire Sector Federation and their call for action that this sort of tragedy never happens again. They must look ahead, including into Phase 2 of the Inquiry, to ensure that competent providers, at every stage of a building’s construction and use, keep residents and occupiers safe and that all means of fire protection are regularly monitored, with the full co-operation of owners, managers and residents. Making fire safety a priority...

Mr. Passey stated that they’re looking at a ‘new world order’, noting multiple changes recommended in Dame Judith Hackitt’s post-Grenfell Review that will dramatically alter the landscape of premises management which ‘some of us won’t recognize’. One of these changes he notes is that ‘duty holders should ensure that any recommendations outlined in the fire risk assessment are undertaken and completed in a timely manner.’ He adds to this, as...

According to the Government, the key function for UKSAR services is to “ensure a coordinated response to emergencies in order to search for, rescue and recover those missing or in distress or potential distress on land, sea and shore line areas, including tidal and inland waters and to coordinate those actions”. Coordinated rescue operations The Police (including the National Police Air Service), Fire & Rescue Services (including Flood Rescue and Urban SAR units), Ambulances Se...

What does STACS mean? STACS means Smart Truck Active Control System. STACS is the foremost firefighting vehicle monitor control system using smart brushless motor technology. It can control several monitors fitted on the roof and bumper from different places and offers great flexibility of use from the driver cabin, or from outside the vehicle by wire or radio connection. Compatible To Any Vehicle STACS is fully configurable and can be adapted to any type of vehicle, regardless of the existi...

Businesses today operate in a world where the growth of violence, vandalism, and theft requires ever-increasing levels of security. While video security cameras have become a standard for the protection of businesses, their effectiveness is limited in outdoor settings and low light conditions. These limitations make perimeter security the first line of defense against intrusion particularly challenging. Thermal imaging cameras are quickly becoming a popular choice for outdoor security applicati...