Introduction to Fire Safety Management

8.4.16 Demolition
All demolition operations fall under the Construction 
(Design and Management) Regulations (CDM) and there-
fore require a systematic approach to the operations. 
Specifi c details relating to demolition will appear in the 
construction phase health and safety plan, the fi re plan, 
demolition risk assessments and method statements.
To combat the high risk of fi re and explosion when 
undertaking demolition works, e.g. disruption and ignition 
of buried gas services or dismantling of tank structures 
that may have contained fl ammable residues, a formal 
system of work should be adopted.
A demolition survey to identify any potential fi re 
and explosion risks together with other risks must be 
undertaken. This should assist in:
➤
Locating underground services
➤
Identifying whether such services are in use or are 
disused
➤
Determining how supplies can be disconnected or 
otherwise made safe (usually undertaken by a repre-
sentative of the local supply company)
➤
Identifying the fl ammable and/or explosive concen-
trations that may be contained within any tanks’ 
structure
➤
Determining methods of residue removal or how the 
materials will be made inert.
Any demolition work must be conducted by a compe-
tent company ensuring that all persons involved with the 
work have received adequate training, are familiar with 
the method statement and operate to a permit to work 
system.
The general requirements for provision of fi re 
fi ghting equipment must also be considered together 
with the provision of gas monitoring systems that can 
detect the presence of fl ammable vapours.
8.4.17 Arson and site security
The majority of issues relating to arson have been dis-
cussed previously within the chapter; however, the 
instances of arson on construction sites are signifi cant,