Preventing Construction Fires
(Taken From Occupational Health and Safety, February 2001)
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Linda F. Johnson
Stevens Publishing Corp.
Causes usually
are simple: careless smoking, no housekeeping, sloppy maintenance on electrical
tools, portable heating, lack of adequate fire watch, or faulty wiring.
Watch
your rough and rowdy construction workers closely as they arrive on the
job site the next time. How many of them carelessly flipped away a lit
cigarette butt before entering?
As they pass by,
is trash blowing around that has been thrown onto the ground? Have you
ever watched a poorly kept, multistory building construction project and
the array of flammable junk and debris being thrown off the sides?
Have you checked
the use of handheld tools and cords lately, or the GFCI on site? What
about portable heating? Stretching plastic tarps to shield workers from
windy conditions and adding a portable heater in excessively close range
does happen when workers are trying to keep warm...
Construction
Site Housekeeping Checklist
Flammables and Tools Checklist
Electrical Items Checklist
Are employees welding
or performing other hot work in a hurry? Are they leaving flammable chemicals
in open containers or not storing and labeling them properly?
Do your nighttime
security folks know how to use a fire extinguisher and how to call in
a fire? Does someone indeed walk the site after hours every day?
For that matter,
are the several hundred other things you and I could list being done properly
to ensure a good fire protection program on the site?
Housekeeping
is one of those areas that will quickly backslide if your rules are
not enforced ruthlessly and consistently.
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Fire is a very real
threat on any construction site, and usually ignition is from a simple
cause such as careless smoking, no housekeeping, sloppy maintenance on
electrical tools, portable heating, lack of adequate fire watch or faulty
wiring.
Careless or disgruntled
workers, or that ever-present clever employee taking shortcuts, can create
fire hazards in the course of a work shift by rigging, sabotaging, or
simple laziness. Can you guarantee fire safety on any construction job
site? No. However, you can do those things that are necessary and required
reasonably to ensure a safe job site. Success takes constant vigilance,
effort, and a reasonably good working relationship with the site. Construction
safety is not for the armchair quarterback--you have to be in the center
of the game and on the field most of the time!
Similarities
and Differences
So often we in the
safety field categorize safety, carving our own little niche into the
business of saving lives and safeguarding property. Surely we all appreciate
the massively overlapping nature of safety between a general industry
process and construction?
A well-maintained
job site with safety as a top priority is much the same wherever it is
located. There are notable differences, however, that are much more extensive
than just the codes that apply. They include the very transient nature
of the construction process and the hazards that change as the project
constantly moves forward.
Management
Issues Checklist
Evacuation and Escape Checklist
Fire safety can be
managed as part of a comprehensive safety program utilizing many of the
same basic principles. These include the following:
-
Are reasonably up-to-date documents on your training efforts maintained at some location remote from the site?
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The person
responsible for safety. Is there a designated safety person on site
who is known to everyone? Does this person have an active role on the
site, and does he or she assist with problem-solving as needed?
- A comprehensive
safety program. We all know what this means: a working safety program,
not a set of rules no one has ever seen that you keep just to impress
those pesky inspectors and insurance reps! They will know anyway if
safety is alive and thriving on your site, within minutes of entering.
- Housekeeping.
Do you have established rules for housekeeping and have you gotten the
message across to your employees and vendors on what is allowed and
what is not permitted? Housekeeping is one of those areas that will
quickly backslide if your rules are not enforced ruthlessly and consistently.
- Equipment.
Is the emergency equipment on site that is needed to get the job done?
Are the right items ready and available to the workers? Is the equipment
kept in good working order and use enforced?
- Staff training.
Is there a consistent and constant training effort at your site? Are
reasonably up-to-date documents on your training efforts maintained
at some location remote from the site? Critical topics such as new employee
orientation, fire extinguisher usage, reporting an on-the-job injury,
evacuation routes, reporting a fire on site, hot work procedures for
fire protection, adequate Hazard Communication for flammables on site,
as well as other chemicals, lockout/tagout, and a host of other critically
needed training falls into this category, depending on the work being
done at the site.
- First aid.
You must ensure that all employees know the details of where first aid
supplies are kept. You must also maintain on the site first aid-trained
personnel where needed and have posted emergency contact information
in the event it is needed. The job site's street address is very handy
to have posted, in the event someone uses a cell phone or the accident
occurs in a remote location. The "take the dirt path beside the
second clump of trees past the old church" sort of directions are
rather tough to follow for EMS personnel!
- The rules.
Site rules for safety as well as preventing fire are useless unless
they are followed. Employers and construction managers should monitor
their work sites and take appropriate action when breaches are found.
- The weather.
The worse the weather conditions, the more creative those clever workers
can become! Employees get in a hurry if a big storm is coming in, and
then they take shortcuts--lots of "I'll do it later" things
suddenly are done that could contribute to or worsen a fire on the site.
A Continuous Concern
As often stated,
construction fire safety tops the list of potential hazards on a job site.
Whether you're responsible for a small construction site or a massive
one, construction fire potential is a continuous concern. Constant effort
must be maintained in order to protect employees, visitors such as inspectors
or vendors delivering supplies, as well as the site itself.
With insurance premiums
and liability costs escalating, redoubling your efforts by keeping a watchful
eye on the fire potential at your site will be grandly rewarded. The risks
may seem intangible or remote, but they offer rewards by reducing potential
losses.
Construction safety
is tough, often thankless work. It takes a persistent safety soul with
a thick hide and a relentless personality to be successful. Accompanying
this article is a series of handy checklists to assist you in your efforts.
_______________________________________________________
Construction
Site Housekeeping
- Are the premises
kept clear of all kinds of refuse and process waste?
- Is there an identified
perimeter to the property that is clearly identified, and is public
traffic/entrance to the site prohibited (where possible)?
- Are waste and
excess debris or scrap swept up and removed from the premises at least
daily?
- Are areas in and
around the building site kept free from accumulated packing materials,
such as empty wooden crates, straw, plastic products, paper, etc.?
- Are appropriate
metal bins (or Dumpsters with lids for some items) provided for readily
combustible waste materials, such as oily rags?
- Are storage places
accessible to firefighters?
- Are there clear
spaces around stacks of stored materials and adequate gangways between
them?
- If a sprinkler
system is installed, are stacks of material arranged so they do not
impede the effective operation of the sprinklers?
_______________________________________________________
Flammables
and Tools
- Are paint, lacquer,
flammable solvents, thinners, and other flammables stored appropriately
for the site location? Is this area clearly labeled as to its purpose?
- Are flammable
liquids carried about in safety containers and not in open tins, buckets,
etc.? Are the employees trained in use and safety precautions?
- Are flammable
liquids handled only at a safe distance from possible sources of ignition?
- Are suitable non-sparking
tools provided for use in places where flammable liquids are kept or
used?
- Is machinery regularly
inspected, with the emphasis on lubrication and cleanliness?
- Are drip trays
provided?
- Are special items
such as LPG cylinders and other flammable materials properly stored?
- Have steps been
taken to prevent floors and walls becoming soaked with oil?
- Are heating appliances
at a safe distance from woodworking and combustible building items?
- Are portable heaters
securely guarded and placed or fixed so that they cannot be knocked
over?
_______________________________________________________
Electrical
Items
- Are defects in
electrical equipment remedied at once?
- Are lockout/tagout
good practices utilized where needed on site?
- Is temporary extension
wiring kept to a minimum, and is care taken not to overload existing
circuits?
- Is the use of
portable lamps kept to a minimum, and are the ones being used provided
with appropriate guards? Is the height appropriate?
- Are the main switches
of all electrical circuits in the off position when the equipment is
not in use?
- Is fire equipment
maintained in good working order at all times and is it accessible for
immediate use?
_______________________________________________________
Management
Issues
- Does the person
on firewatch have access to a telephone? If so, does he or she know
how to use it? Is there a language barrier?
- Is the telephone
number of the fire department or emergency response group prominently
displayed?
- Is a routine inspection
of the premises made when work has finished, and again at least one
hour after work has stopped for the day, to check for slow burning or
smoldering fires? Are portable heating units verified as turned off?
- Is there someone
on the staff at management level responsible for fire prevention measures
to resolve differences in opinion and make management decisions?
- Is every employee
aware of the means of escape from the premises?
- Does every employee
know how to use the fire equipment with appropriate and documented training?
- Are all stored
materials clear of the floor in an approved location?
- Where drains are
provided, are they kept free of obstructions?
- If smoking is
allowed at specific areas on site, are appropriate receptacles for cigarette
butts provided? Are these checked throughout the day and emptied as
needed, and again when work is completed? Is an appropriate distance
from any combustible materials maintained?
- Is there a system
of supervision on site for specialty activities, such as welding operations
or other hot work that may be carried out on the premises?
- Do those doing
hot work have appropriate fire extinguishers with them and know how
to use them appropriately for the hazard?
- Is fire equipment
located where it is really needed? Is it easily accessible and in good
working condition?
- Are the right
classes of extinguishers provided for the types of fire that could occur?
_______________________________________________________
Evacuation
and Escape
- Is a well-defined
fire alarm used on site and known by all employees?
- Can the alarm
be heard by everyone working on the site above the normal background
noise?
- Are allowances
and accommodations made for disabled workers and those who work alone
or in isolated situations?
- Where possible,
are at least two escape routes in different directions provided for
the employees to use?
- Can enclosed escape
routes such as stairwells resist fire and smoke ingress from the surrounding
site?
- Where fire doors
are provided, are they kept closed and not blocked open?
- Are escape routes
and emergency exits clearly designated?
- Are the escape
routes and exits kept clear at all times?
- Are emergency
exits never locked when people are on the site?
- Has emergency
lighting been installed if necessary to enable escape, and is it adequate?
Has it been tested?
- Is there is a
way to account for all personnel on the job site at all times?
- Has an assembly
point been identified where everyone can gather and be accounted for?
Do the employees know where that location is?
These
checklists are for informational purposes only. No checklist is a substitute
for a comprehensive safety program.
Linda F. Johnson, CSP, MS, CEHS, is the Technical Editor of Occupational
Health & Safety.
This paper appears in the eLCOSH website with the permission of the author
and/or copyright holder and may not be reproduced without their consent.
eLCOSH is an information clearinghouse. eLCOSH and its sponsors are not
responsible for the accuracy of information provided on this web site,
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