All fire deaths to be viewed as preventable in radical culture shift

Fire deaths to be viewed as preventable in radical culture shift - graphic shows some of the figures in a more visual format

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Deaths because of fire will all now be viewed as preventable in a radical shift in approach by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS).

The decision to move from the assumption some people will die in fires that cannot be stopped is a move which backs the way in which the Service has moved to delivering its services in recent years.

This means that those who have taken their own lives or who have killed others through fires will be considered by GMFRS and other organisations as people who can be helped, supported and stopped from causing a fire as long as the right agencies have enough information and are able to intervene.

The change comes as the number of people dying as a result of non-accidental fires exceeded the number of people dying in accidental fires, for the first time, during 2011 and 2012.

GMFRS is sending the report to other organisations such as councils, health providers, the police and others this month (December) as a starting point for doing more work together to reduce deaths.

The figures and findings were presented to the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority’s Prevention and Protection Committee on in November.

Geoff Harris, Head of Protection for GMFRS, said: “We firmly believe every single fire and fire death is preventable but we just can’t do it on our own and need the help of other agencies.

“We need to move away from the language of preventable and non-preventable deaths but at this moment the term is known to other organisations we work with so we have not changed it in the report but need to look at that in the future.

“This year is the first year we have seen more people die because of non-accidental fires and we will be looking at how we can tap into other agencies to tackle that.”

Learning from Preventable and Non-Preventable Fire Deaths presents all the information GMFRS holds on fire deaths from the last five years and will be used as a starting point for them to work more closely with other organisations to try and reduce the numbers of people dying in fires.

The report put before the committee presents findings on research done into all the deaths because of fire from 2007 to 2012.

It shows that there were 24 fire-related deaths between April 1, 2011, and March 31, 2012, and 10 of those were accidental, which is a 44 per cent reduction since 2007/2008.

The other 14 fire deaths were non-accidental and that is a 133 per cent increase on 2007/2008.

During the past 10 years, the numbers of non-accidental fire deaths has fluctuated from a peak of 20 in 2001/02, with the lowest annual total of six in 2007/2008, but has remained in the low teens since.

The report itself does not draw any conclusions and is merely a starting point to look at what more can be done to help reduce the number of people dying in fires.

“None of this tells us why,” added Mr Harris. “We need to take this away, commission some further research to see if there are a number of factors that all come together.

“That analysis will allow us to develop strategies and tactics to help people in the right way at the right time.”

GMFRS recognises its wider role in helping other agencies to reduce the impact of accidents in the home. Some new work is already being done with partner agencies in two boroughs, to try and reduce the number of falls in the home, as this is the biggest cause of fatalities in older people.