MATERIAL HAZARDS AND EXPOSURES ON IDLE ASSETS
MATERIAL HAZARDS AND EXPOSURES ON IDLE ASSETS
Working from home has rendered office and industrial buildings vacant thereby posing a huge risk to fire hazards. In most cases there has been neglect to service fire fighting equipment or equipment servicing is long overdue. This is a time bomb and there is need to remind clients for the need to ensure equipment is serviced when due. Closely related to this is the fact that companies have skeletal staff coming to work premises and what likely happens is that fire teams are not properly constituted and those going to work may not have an idea of fire fighting. Going forward there is need to train all employees about fire fighting so that if employees are going to work on a rotational basis everyone is aware of procedures to follow in the event of a fire.
Companies should come up with an emergency procedure check list that should be regularly checked so as to make sure all procedures are adhered to and new risks are addressed. Some of the procedures to include on check list are:
- Are all employees aware of fire brigade contact numbers?
- Are emergency procedures clearly visible to all employees?
- Are fire extinguishers and smoke detectors serviced?
- Were all employees trained in fire fighting?
This “new normal” means that new structures have to be put in place and here are some suggestions:
- Fire alarm and other essential fire safety systems – fire alarms and smoke control systems and sprinklers must be maintained in good working order and normal testing regimes maintained..
- There should be protocols in place which can protect safety systems in the absence of contractors or workers on site.
- Business owners and safety managers should install mechanisms such as fire door retainers or magnetic locks with sensors that close doors when a fire alarm sounds.
- “Have a ‘stop moment’ and review your risk assessment. Are your fire doors doing their job? Do you have enough fire marshals per person at work to manage in the event of a fire? Are you sure about your chain of command, and know that you will have an incident leader on site to oversee the evacuation?
These are challenging times with COVID but we cannot let it distract us from other workplace risks, which remain and in some cases are compounded by the situation. Last but not least “Fire Insurance” policies also need to be looked at to ensure that the sums insured represent current replacement cost so as to avoid under insurance in the event of a loss.