Clue: It is unlikely to be the Fire Service.
Why? In 2014 the States of Jersey Fire Service attended 48 fires in public, commercial and industrial premises. For high risk property fires the Fire Service have a target to be at the scene within 10 minutes. In 2014 92% of call outs achieved this target, which is comforting. However, in their report, the Fire Service stated that: “In less than 30 seconds a small flame can get completely out of control and turn into a major fire”.
Who is going to be first on the scene? Most likely, your employees.
Fire Warden Safety training is essential for any company that wants to make sure that its employees, visitors are safe and assets protected. The Wardens provide a proactive level of security in preventing fires by:
- Regularly assessing and managing potential fire risks in premises;
- Making sure that fire emergency systems including alarms, lighting and other safety features work;
- Making sure that emergency systems and fire fighting equipment is inspected and maintained; and,
- Monitoring contractors to make sure they are not, in themselves, a fire hazard.
Fire Wardens are essential in planning for safe and efficient evacuation procedures including:
- Preparing general emergency evacuation plans for all employees and visitors;
- Preparing personal emergency evacuation plans for employees or visitors with mobility, visual or hearing impairment;
- Training staff in emergency evacuation; and,
- Testing that training and reviewing performance with regular fire drills.
If a fire does occur Fire Wardens should, without putting themselves at risk, react by:
- Conducting a sweep of the building to check that everyone has evacuated;
- Assisting mobility, hearing or sight impaired people in evacuation;
- Making sure that everyone is at the company’s assembly point; and,
- Meet the emergency services to provide them with information.
Making sure that these duties are carried out regularly and competently is hugely important and could mean the difference between life and death for your employees or costly property damage to your business.
We are running fire warden training on 26 September 2017. This vital training takes just half a day and costs £90 per person. To find out more and to book, click here.
