Nov 12, 2010
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) issued a special report recently examining the characteristics of Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings. The report, Thanksgiving Day Fires in Residential Buildings, was developed by USFA's National Fire Data Center.
The report is part of the Topical Fire Report Series and is based on 2006 to 2008 data from the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). According to the report, an estimated 2,000 Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings occur annually in the United States, resulting in an estimated average of five deaths, 25 injuries, and $21 million in property loss.
The leading cause of all Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings is, by far, cooking. In addition, these fires occur most frequently in the afternoon hours from noon to 4 p.m. Smaller, confined fires account for 71 percent and larger, nonconfined fires account for 29 percent of Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings. Finally, smoke alarms were not present in 20 percent of nonconfined Thanksgiving Day fires that occurred in occupied residential buildings.
The topical reports are designed to explore facets of the U.S. fire problem as depicted through data collected in NFIRS. Each topical report briefly addresses the nature of the specific fire or fire-related topic, highlights important findings from the data, and may suggest other resources to consider for further information. Also included are recent examples of fire incidents that demonstrate some of the issues addressed in the report or that put the report topic in context.
To view the report, click here
From ohsonline.com
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
USFA Releases Thanksgiving Day Fires in Residential Buildings Report
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
"position entails work of considerable difficulty"
Thanks to Bob Grieshaber for the submission.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
AT&T Building Leaks 1,000 Gallons Of Diesel Fuel
Emergency generators can leak!!
Posted: 7:35 pm PDT October 2, 2010
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- About one thousand gallons of diesel fuel have spilled from a ten-story building and into a storm drain and surrounding concrete in San Jose Saturday evening, a fire captain said.
Firefighters responded to a 5:15 p.m. call that fuel had been leaking out of an AT&T Corp. building at South Almaden Blvd., San Jose fire Captain Barry Stallard said.
On the building's roof, arriving crews discovered an engine -- meant to power the building in the event of an outage -- was inexplicably leaking diesel fuel into the roof's drain and down to the street, Stallard said.
The drain has leaked fuel into the nearby sewage system and onto a surrounding concrete recreational area where people jog.
The engine has a fuel capacity of about 100 gallons, Stallard said, but is connected to tanks in the building parking lot that hold about 50,000 gallons.
The building operates AT&T's 911 hub, which is used to route residents' emergency calls to local dispatchers. It also operates standard phone service.
Service has not been affected by the spill, Stallard said.
Almaden Boulevard is closed between West San Fernando and West Santa Clara streets, Stallard said.
No injuries have been reported.
Crews are continuing to respond to the incident with no estimation of when the oil will stop leaking or when the roads will be reopened.
From http://www.ktvu.com
Monday, October 4, 2010
Washington University to Pay Fine for Hazardous Issues
Posted 27 Sep 2010
Washington University in St. Louis is paying a $15,000 civil penalty over what the federal government calls "hazardous waste management issues."
The school also will spend at least $45,000 on a supplemental project to help clean local high school laboratories of hazardous waste, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said.
Washington University’s hazardous waste problems at the school’s Danforth and School of Medicine campuses were uncovered through inspections conducted in April 2008.
Inspections found violations for failure to make hazardous waste determinations and for operating a treatment, storage and disposal facility without a proper permit. There also were "issues related to the storage of hazardous waste beyond legal time limits," failure to properly label hazardous waste storage containers, and failure to manage waste lamps among the problems, the EPA said.
As part of a settlement, the school will spend a minimum of $45,000 on a supplemental environmental project to address hazardous waste issues in 12 high schools within the St. Louis Public Schools District.
The university agreed to conduct ongoing clean-out operations at laboratories at the two campuses, the EPA said.
*For more information on news about waste and recycling go to www.wasterecyclingnews.com
From: http://veoliaes-ts.com/buzz-newsletters/September2010/3
Monday, September 20, 2010
Portable Generator Hazards
For a pdf poster on Using Portable Generators Safely, click here
Portable generators are useful when temporary or remote electric power is needed. However, if used incorrectly, gasoline, kerosene, and other gas-powered generators can cause carbon monoxide poisoning, electric shocks, fires, and burns. Generator accidents can be fatal!
Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisoning
Every year, people die in accidents related to portable generator use. For example, a young camper was killed by CO from a portable generator's exhaust tube adjacent to the victim's campsite. Most deaths involve CO poisoning from portable generators used indoors or in partially-enclosed spaces. The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that between 1999 and 2004 portable generators caused 172 CO poisoning deaths in the U.S. (More....)
Friday, September 3, 2010
NFPA 1 Fire Code Seminar encore
Note 9/27/2010: The details for the January session are now available.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
DNR Secretary Matt Frank announces staff changes at DNR
Contact(s): Laurel Steffes (608) 266-8109
MADISON – Department of Natural Resources Secretary Matt Frank announced Thursday that veteran staffer Al Shea will replace Deputy Secretary Pat Henderson, who is leaving the agency to pursue options in the private sector. Henderson has served as deputy since 2007.
“Pat has done a tremendous job as my deputy and has been an invaluable leader within the agency and in Governor Doyle’s administration. I thank him for his tremendous service to the people of Wisconsin,” said Frank. (More....)
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