Fire Safety Tips for the Workplace
According to U.S. Fire Administration, "there were 18,700 office and store fires in the United States in 2019 that cause $744 million in direct property damage". Depending on the workplace, it is normal to have different fire risks, however, there are some basics of fire safety every workplace should know. In this article, we will go over some of these fire safety tips for different workplaces.
Recognize Workplace Risks
To prevent the fire from occurring in the first place, eliminating the threats in the workplace is a great start. National Fire Protection Association has informed the public about the most common reasons for fires in workplaces. Some of these are:
- Faulty electrical equipment
- Flammable and combustible materials
- Smoking Materials for Arson
- Overloaded electric outlets
- Any type of device that heats
Maintenance of Fire Detection Systems
All the other techniques would be useless if you don’t have a functional system in your workplace that would detect the fire and suppress it. It’s probably the most important barrier against fires and the potential harm they bring. Because of this, your workplace should hire professionals for regular maintenance.
Know Where the Equipment Is Located
Make sure that everyone in your workplace knows where the fire extinguishers are located. A fire extinguisher must be right in front of the eyes because you will never know when a fire might take place. This is a common mistake that happens in many workplaces. Make sure the fire extinguishers aren’t behind or under any other object and ensure they are easily reachable.
Have A Plan For Fire Safety
To know what to do in case of a fire, every workplace should have a fire safety plan. It would be better if this plan is printed out and put in an area where every single employee can look at it easily. This page should include:
- Procedure for evacuation
- Routes for evacuation
- Locations of fire extinguishers
- Safe places where employees can hide in case of a fire
- Potential hazards
- Names of internal fire safety guards
Hold Routine Drills
It is very crucial for every single employee to know what to do in case of a fire. The main way to make sure everybody knows the exit plans, make sure to perform regular fire drills. To ensure every part of the plan is executed accordingly, choosing a fire supervisor or marshal from your workplace might be a good idea.
Inform Staff About Fire Safety Procedures
For the sake of the well-being of the employees, every company should hold regular educational sessions on fire safety procedures. During these sessions, there are a few points that need to be addressed. Some of these are:
- Fire threats in the workplace
- Fire prevention methods
- Evacuation Procedure
- Ways of handling hazardous materials
Fire Damage Repair and Restoration
Unfortunately, even though many fires can be prevented, they still take place due to many reasons. If a fire took place in your house or in your workplace, it wouldn’t be easy to recover from it because there are many aspects of recovering from a fire. You would not only be dealing with the damage from the flames, but also from what those bring, such as smoke, soot, ash, and water. Because of this, let the professionals of Tidal Wave Response take care of your fire damage restoration. If you need help with your fire recovery, call our professionals today and put your mind at ease.
