Introduction to Health and Safety at Work

Fire hazards and control
209
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environmental damage from the fi re and/or fi ghting 
the fi re – fi re-fi ghting water, the products of com-
bustion and exploding building materials, such as 
asbestos cement roofs, can contaminate signifi cant 
areas around the fi re site.
13.8 
Fire risk assessment
13.8.1 General
What fi re precautions are needed depends on the risks.
There are several methods of carrying out a fi re risk 
assessment, the one described below is based on the 
method contained within ‘Fire Safety An Employers’ 
Guide’ published jointly by the Stationery Offi ce and HSE 
Books. A systematic approach, considered in fi ve simple 
stages, is generally the best practical method. The fi re 
risk assessment under the RRFSO is separate from 
the Risk assessment under the HSW Act Management 
Regulations (see Chapter 5). Later guidelines may allow 
a joint risk assessment in low risk premises but at the 
time of writing this is not clear.
13.8.2 Stage 1 – Identify fi re hazards
There are fi ve main hazards produced by fi re that should 
be considered when assessing the level of risk:
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oxygen 
depletion
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fl ames and heat
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smoke
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gaseous combustion products
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structural failure of buildings.
Of these smoke and other gaseous combustion prod-
ucts are the most common cause of death in fi res.
For a fi re to occur it needs sources of heat and fuel. 
If these hazards can be kept apart, removed or reduced, 
then the risks to people and businesses are minimized. 
Identify fi re hazards
in the workplace is the fi rst stage 
as follows:
identify any combustibles
– Most workplaces contain 
combustible materials. Usually, the presence of normal 
stock in trade should not cause concern, provided the 
materials are used safely and stored away from sources 
of ignition. Good standards of housekeeping are essen-
tial to minimize the risk of a fi re starting or spreading 
quickly.
The amount of combustible material in a workplace 
should be kept as low as is reasonably practicable. 
Materials should not be stored in gangways, corridors 
or stairways or where they may obstruct exit doors and 
routes. Fires often start and are assisted to spread by 
combustible waste in the workplace. Such waste should 
be collected frequently and removed from the work-
place, particularly where processes create large quanti-
ties of it.
Some combustible materials, such as fl ammable 
liquids, gases or plastic foams, ignite more readily than 
others and quickly produce large quantities of heat and/ 
or dense toxic smoke. Ideally, such materials should 
be stored away from the workplace or in fi re-resisting 
stores. The quantity of these materials kept or used in 
the workplace should be as small as possible, normally 
no more than one-half day’s supply.