MODULE 3

FIRE PREVENTION AND PROTECTION

What Does Fire Triangle Mean?

• The fire triangle is an easily understandable model that

explains the ingredients required for combustion.
• It graphically illustrates the three criteria required for a
fire, which are ignition, fuel and an oxidizing agent.
• Without one of these three ingredients, fire is
impossible.
• The fire triangle is also referred to as the combustion
triangle
• The fire triangle can be used either as a means of
identifying potential fire hazards or as a tool for
training employees in fire prevention practices.
• In industries where fires could pose a threat to
safety, it is essential that the three ingredients
required for combustion are not allowed to co-exist
in close proximity to one another.
• Since many industries make use of flammable
substances in industrial processes, and oxygen is
present everywhere, unless specifically excluded,
the focus is generally on the prevention of ignition.
If just one of these components is removed, the fire triangle will collapse and
the fire will be extinguished.
1. Heat:
• A source of heat is required in order for ignition to
occur, and different materials have different ‘flash
points’ e.g. the lowest temperature at which they
ignite.
• Unfortunately, combustion reactions also produce
heat as they burn, further increasing the
temperature of the fuel.
• For some types of fire, the heat can be cooled with
the application of water.
2. Fuel:
• A fire cannot begin if there is no material to burn.
• Homes and businesses are full of flammable
materials, such as paper, oil, wood and fabrics. Any
of these can serve as a fuel for a fire.
• Some materials burn more easily than others.
• Fuels are probably the most difficult ‘side’ of the fire
triangle to remove, so it’s wise to store them
appropriately to prevent them becoming a fire
hazard.
3. Oxygen:
• To sustain the combustion reaction, oxygen (or an
oxidising agent) is needed, as it reacts with the
burning fuel to release heat and CO2.
• Earth’s atmosphere consists of 21% oxygen, so there
is plenty available to trigger a fire if the other two
components are present.
• Fire blankets and certain fire extinguishers remove
the oxygen ‘side’ of the triangle by removing it or
displacing it, causing suffocation and thereby
ceasing the combustion reaction.
Fire Triangle Facts

• Normal air contains 21% oxygen.

• Fuel may also contain oxygen
• Heat sources include: the Sun, hot surfaces, sparks,
friction and electrical energy.
• Fuel sources can be a solid, liquid or gas.
How to safely remove heat, fuel and oxygen
from a fire?

• To prevent the ignition and subsequent spread of fire,

it’s important that one or more elements are removed
from The Fire Triangle.
• The action you should take depends on the element you
wish to remove, and we’re on hand to best advise you
on how this can be done safely.
 Removing fuel
• Use fire-resistant materials in and around your premises
where possible.
• This will help to prevent the fire from spreading and
igniting non-fire-resistant materials.
• Fire-resistant materials can be used in the
manufacturing of a variety of items, including:
• – Clothes
– Building materials
– Office furniture
Removing heat
• Fast-moving gusts of air will help to remove the heat
from a fire, much like blowing out a candle.
However, many fires are too large for this method to
be effective, and so, realistically, water should be
applied instead to remove the heat from a fire.
• A water fire extinguisher would be the safest way of
doing this.
• However, water fire extinguishers cannot be used on
all types of fire, and so extra care should be taken
on electrical or cooking fires
Removing oxygen

• Oxygen can effectively sustain a fire, and so it’s important that

it’s removed from the triangle to prevent the spread of a fire.
• Its removal can be achieved by using either a carbon dioxide
or a foam fire extinguisher.
• For cooking or kitchen fires, a fire blanket will aid in the
suffocation of the fire.
• Fire doors will also help to prevent a sufficient amount of
oxygen from reaching the site of a fire.
• Here at City Fire Protection, we’re able to supply internal fire
doors and high-quality timber fire doors for your commercial
premises, including FD30 and FD60 fire doors.
• To help protect your people and premises, City Fire
are on hand to provide your commercial property
with a wide range of fire safety products, equipment
and services to help prevent the outbreak and
subsequent spread of fire.
• As well as fire doors and fire extinguishers, we can
also supply a variety of fire alarm systems,
emergency lighting, risk assessments,
fire warden training and passive fire protection.
Flashover
• NFPA-National Fire Protection Association 921 defines
flashover as “a transitional phase in the development of a
compartment fire in which surfaces exposed to thermal
radiation reach its ignition temperature more or less
simultaneously and fire spreads rapidly throughout the
space resulting in full room involvement or total
involvement of the compartment or enclosed area.”
• This means there is a sudden ignition of everything
combustible in a contained area. Temperatures can rise to
1,000 degrees Fahrenheit in just a few seconds. Humans
are not likely to survive in a compartment that has a
flashover.
Stage 3- Fully Developed Phase:

•A fully developed fire is the hardest to suppress because, at this point, the fire is at maximum
temperatures and causing the most heat damage.

• If you’ve failed to suppress it before this point, then your odds of stopping the fire are much
smaller.
Stage 4- Decay Phase:

•The decay of a fire is the phase when the fire decreases in intensity until it is either a smoulder
or non-existent.

• If there was no suppression, this is likely when there is nothing left for the fire to burn.
Fire Severity:

• Fire severity is a quantitative measure of the effects

of a fire on the environment, typically considering
both the damage to vegetation and the impacts on
the soil.
• Fire severity is described along a spectrum, ranging
from unburned/low severity, to moderate severity,
and high severity
Product:
• Product is a result of a process, or developed or otherwise obtained,
regardless of the degree of its processing, and is intended for placing
on the market or supply in the market.
 What is Product Safety?
• Product safety is the ability of a product to be safe for intended use, as determined
when evaluated against a set of established rules.
Why is it necessary?

• It is unlikely that anyone would deliberately place an unsafe

product on the market, but what is meant by safe?
• The legislation sets out clear test and documentary requirements
that manufacturers and distributors placing equipment on the
European market, must follow to demonstrate that their products
meet defined safety criteria and are safe for intended use.
• Evidence that the prescribed legislation has been conformed with
can be demanded by the enforcement authorities (Trading
Standards, HSE etc.), within strict timeframes (normally 48
hours).
What are the legalities?
• In the UK and Europe, the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations and Low Voltage
Directive (LVD) 2014/35/EU applies to the majority of electrical equipment in use at
home, the office or industry.

• The LVD / Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations require that electrical equipment
can only be placed on the market if it does not endanger the safety of persons,
property or domestic animals.

• The LVD / Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations are applicable, with a few
exceptions, to any electrical equipment designed for use with a voltage rating of
between 50 and 1000 V for alternating current (A.C.) and between 75 and 1500 V for
direct current (D.C). In the UK, this European law is implemented by Statutory
Instrument 3260 (SI 3260).

• The CE Mark is a mandatory symbol of compliance with all relevant directives (unless in
transition) Therefore, if your product operates within the specified voltage range then
conformance with the LVD is likely to be required.

• Finally it must be understood that the LVD is a “test” directive and that it is a
requirement that a safety test report is included in the Technical File
How to Reduce the risk?

• The best way to minimise the risk of not meeting the LVD is to ensure that at the
design stage the product development takes account of any relevant harmonised
safety standards and the Principle Safety Objectives of the Directive.

• It is also prudent for it to have an independent Basic Safety Assessment (BSA)

conducted at prototype stage to check the design is likely to meet the requirements
before committing to volume manufacture.

• Importers can also find a BSA a very useful tool in helping to establish the accuracy or
otherwise of test reports from outside of the EU.
Technical requirements of
Product Safety:
• Technical regulation means any regulation, which, for a single product
or product group regulates at least one of the following elements:
1) the technical requirements to be met by the products that are
delivered to the market;
2) requirements for safety during the life of the product;
3) regular and extraordinary reviews over the life of the product;
4) requirements regarding packaging and labelling;
5) obligations of the suppliers that deliver the product the market;
6) conformity assessment procedures;
7) requirements to be fulfilled by conformity assessment body;
8) conformity certificates and technical documentation necessary for
proving the compliance of product that must be made available to the
competent bodies (instructions, data, etc.);
9) mark and manner of marking of the product.
The technical regulations are adopted for the purpose of
protection of public interest and particularly protection of life, health,
and safety of people, animals, plants, environment and protection of
property
(1) The technical regulations for certain products or groups of products
are prepared or adopted by the competent bodies of the public
administration (hereinafter referred to as competent ministries).
(2) During preparation of the technical regulation the competent
ministry shall particularly take into consideration the following:
• Prevention of unnecessary barriers for the trade;
• The equality of domestic and foreign products on the market;
• The use of Montenegrin standards that accept the international
standards as the basis for preparation of the technical regulation;
• Setting of an appropriate deadline when the technical regulation shall
come into force;
• Changed of circumstances occurring after the adoption of technical
regulation, for the purpose of its amendment or abrogation;
• meeting the objectives of the technical regulation in a manner that is
least restrictive for the trade;
• requirements that a product must meet primarily in terms of
functional characteristics, and not in terms of design or descriptive
characteristics of the product.
Why is it so important to work safely with or
near electricity?

• The voltage of the electricity and the available electrical

current in regular businesses and homes has enough
power to cause death by electrocution.
• Even changing a light bulb without unplugging the lamp
can be hazardous because coming in contact with the
"hot", "energized" or "live" part of the socket could kill a
person
• There are four main types of injuries: electrocution
(fatal), electric shock, burns, and falls. These injuries can
happen in various ways:
• Direct contact with exposed energized conductors or
circuit parts. When electrical current travels through our
bodies, it can interfere with the normal electrical signals
between the brain and our muscles (e.g., heart may stop
beating properly, breathing may stop, or muscles may
spasm).
• When the electricity arcs (jumps, or "arcs") from an
exposed energized conductor or circuit part (e.g.,
overhead power lines) through a gas (such as air) to a
person who is grounded (that would provide an
alternative route to the ground for the electrical current).
• Thermal burns including burns from heat generated by an electric
arc, and flame burns from materials that catch on fire from
heating or ignition by electrical currents or an electric arc flash.
Contact burns from being shocked can burn internal tissues while
leaving only very small injuries on the outside of the skin.
• Thermal burns from the heat radiated from an electric arc flash.
Ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) light emitted from the arc flash
can also cause damage to the eyes.
• An arc blast can include a potential pressure wave released from
an arc flash. This wave can cause physical injuries, collapse your
lungs, or create noise that can damage hearing.
• Muscle contractions, or a startle reaction, can cause a person to
fall from a ladder, scaffold or aerial bucket. The fall can cause
serious injuries.
Electrical safety:
Inspect Cords and Plugs
• Check extension cords and plugs daily. Do not use, and discard cords and plugs if
they are worn or damaged.
• Have any extension cord that feels more than comfortably warm checked by an
electrician.
Eliminate Octopus Connections
• Do not plug several items into one outlet.
• Pull the plug, not the cord.
• Do not disconnect power supply by pulling or jerking the cord from the outlet.
Pulling the cord causes wear and may cause a shock.
Never Break OFF the Third Prong on a Plug
• Replace broken 3-prong plugs and make sure the third prong is properly grounded.
• Never Use Extension Cords as Permanent Wiring
• Use extension cords only to temporarily supply power to
an area that does not have a power outlet.
• Keep extension cords away from heat, water and oil.
They can damage the insulation and cause a shock.
• Do not allow vehicles to pass over unprotected
extension cords. Extension cords should be put in
protective wireway, conduit, pipe or protected by
placing planks alongside them.