Portable Fire Extinguishers are Cost Effective
NFPA statistics show that in education facilities, portable fire extinguishers successfully suppressed nearly 30 percent of reported fires from 1991 to1995. They can suppress fires quickly or create a path to safety, and code mandates they be placed every 75 feet in a commercial building.
This manually operated tool is cost effective — less than 1 cent per square foot — and highly efficient, extinguishing 94 percent of small and contained fires within two minutes. Stanford University emphasizes its many successes with portable fire extinguishers, and Leung stresses the importance of training faculty, staff and students to know how to use the tool. Cornell University also adopts this policy and places more than 9,600 extinguishers around its campus. However, it’s important for school safety personnel to know which class of extinguisher to place — and where — on campus.
- Water extinguishers can be used in bookstores, offices and warehouses, helping to suppress fiber materials such as paper and cardboards.
- ABC multipurpose dry chemical extinguishers are designed for highly traveled areas, including hallways, stairways, classrooms, student unions and residence halls, as they can suppress a variety of fires.
- Sensitive mater
ials and electronics found in computer rooms, laboratories, data storage and rare book rooms in libraries should be protected with clean agent-filled extinguishers. These devices are low in toxicity and leave no clean-up residue, with minimal damage to expensive equipment. “Green” agents are also available for a more eco-friendly option. - Class K extinguishers safely extinguish grease fires and are made for both commercial and residential kitchens. They should be used in cafeterias as well as residential halls and Greek housing with single-unit kitchens.
Standpipe Fire Hoses Can Minimize Water Damage
Typically, fire departments are three to five minutes away, and 70 percent are volunteer-based. In these cases, there can be up to a 15 minute wait for fire response. Standpipe fire hose stations — which do not rely on heat, smoke or flame to spread before water can be applied to the fire —allow occupants to quickly defend in place once the fire department is called and everyone is safe.
The equipment’s simple-to-use operation allows trained staff, such as resident advisors, to control or extinguish a fire while it is still small, before the fire develops sufficiently to activate the sprinkler system. This manually-activated equipment provides total reliability in the event of failure of automatic systems.
In some cases, fires spread too quickly before occupants have time to exit. Standpipe fire hose stations can clear a path of safety, otherwise blocked by flames. They also provide temporary protection for occupants attempting to escape the building.
Fire hoses installed within standpipe stations can actually minimize water damage, as water is released directly at the firebase versus blanket spray from automatic sprinkler stations. In addition, they can be shut off immediately after the fire is extinguished.
The University of California Merced uses standpipe rack hose systems in auditoriums and gymnasiums because these venues are used for a wide range of activities. “Whether for sports events, concerts or other general assembly activities that may require extra combustible materials like a stage, standpipe rack hose systems provide an added level of fire safety checks and balances, and a means of active fire protection,” says Gini Krippner, fire marshal at Merced.
Standpipe fire hose stations are typically mounted on the wall for use in dormitories, academic buildings, student unions, and sports centers — anywhere on campus with more than three stories. In addition, this equipment is often used in theatres or near stages where automated systems cannot be installed due to interference with lighting.
