Incident Data by Station Areas in Merseyside - Essay Example

Name: Course: Institution: Tutor: Analysis of the Last Four Years Incident Data by Station Areas in Merseyside Introduction The Merseyside County is one of the many regions in the country that are frequently ravaged by fires and which incur heavy tolls in terms of property destruction and loss of lives. During the four year period spanning 2004/2005-2007/2008, the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service recorded one of the highest incidents of fires and this presented a major issue of health concern. Information obtained from the county’s fire management facility indicates that risks related to fire outbreaks are a very challenging issue for the people and business communities of this region. This notwithstanding, the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service has made significant efforts to reduce the risks associated with fire outbreaks, although these efforts have not been effective in eliminating the risks fully. While there have been significant development in controlling and preventing fires in Merseyside County, the number of incidents that were recorded during the four years period still remains high. There is, thus, need for the authorities to implement strategies for containing the situation. Some of the most effective strategies that can work in the circumstances include educating people on the need to maintain healthy neighborhoods. The community should also be provided with basic fire fighting equipments as an important step in complementing the activities of the rescue teams. Risk Assessment for Vulnerability of Mersey County to Fire Incidents Merseyside is one of the county areas with high vulnerability to fire risks and this makes the place one of the most dangerous areas to live. However, the level of risks associated with fire varies from one locality to another within the county. The following table shows the total number of incidents that were recorded during each of the four years. Table 1: Overview of Incidents, 2004/05 – 2007/08. Source (Chart 1) The above table indicates progressive reduction in the number of fire incidents during the four year period. Official statistics from the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service show that during the 2004/2005-2007/2008 period, a total of 18 fire incidents occurred that required prompt attention of the facility. This figure was large considering that this was historically one of the periods with the minimum number of fire incidents. This, therefore, presents a very serious situation as can be evidenced by the kind of resources and efforts that were deployed by the facility to control and contain the situation. Throughout the Merseyside County, there are a total of 26 firefighting and rescue stations. The county has also deployed small but yet highly effective mechanisms for fighting fire such as small fire units, as well as home safety fire checks units for emergency. These initiatives have, however, not been effective in controlling and preventing incidents of fire outbreaks since the county still experiences high risks of fire outbreaks. Information obtained from the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service facility indicates that some regions within the county are at more risks of fire outbreak than other regions. For instance, residential areas have high vulnerability to fire risks as indicated by the number of incidents that occurred during the four year period. Some of the areas that were affected most include Croxteth and St. Hellens. One of the reasons why some areas have high vulnerability for fire risks is the unequal distribution of fire fighting stations in the county. In fact, there is a dense concentration of ground stations in residential areas and towns than in areas far away from towns. But since towns and residential areas are highly populated, it them means that these areas incur higher causalities than other places during fire outbreaks. A research study by Hilton, Tally and Mercy (2004) indicates that when an outbreak of fire occurs in a densely populated area, it is likely to cause more damages and causalities than is the case in sparsely populated areas. A possible explanation for this phenomenon is that buildings and people are concentrated within small areas in populated regions. This explains why majority of fires that were observed in Merseyside during the four year period were primarily secondary fires. The table below shows gives a breakdown of the number of incidents by type. Type Of Incident Number of Times as a Percentage of Total Single House Dwelling Fires 4.0% Secondary Fires (FSEC 04: Such as Rubbish Fires, Bonfires, Derelict Buildings etc) 39.7% RTA & Extrications 3.8% Other Special Services 7.6% Malicious FalseAlarms 3.6% False Alarm Good Intent 8.1 Automatic False Alarms 18.6% Other Building Fires 4.9% Other Fires 9.5% Table 2: Percentage of Incidents by Type. Source: Chat 2 Both false alarms and secondary fires presented a major risk in the Merseyside region during this period. About 40% of all incidents attended by the Merseyside fire and rescue service facility were secondary fires and these were caused by bonfires, derelict buildings and rubbish fires. Secondary fires presented major risks to commercial buildings and domestic properties, which could also lead to loss of life. Throughout the Merseyside County, most of the areas that are highly vulnerable to secondary fires are associated with particular lifestyles and whenever fire incidents occur, there are high chances of people losing lives or sustaining severe injuries. Information from the facility indicates that secondary fires affected almost every region of the county during this period and hence this type of fire present one of the most problematic risk to the people and authorities of the Merseyside county. False alarms were also a major concern for the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service Facility. While fire alarms are purposely intended to inform the facility whenever incidents of fire occur, such alarms are routinely abused by the public thus making rescue efforts difficult. During the 2004/2005-2007/2008 period, false alarms were the second largest incidents recorded after secondary fires. According to Lilian and Agella (2011) false alarms complicate efforts by authorities to take appropriate action and this can worsen the situation in case of a real incident. During the period, most of the false alarms were caused by automated systems and this accounted for 19% of the fire incidents recorded by the facility during this period. As such, false alarms present a very undesirable situation given that alarms are intended to facilitate solving of the problem and not to complicate it. Evaluation of Statistical Data Information obtained from the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service indicates that even though there have been made considerable efforts to control and prevent the occurrence of fires in the county, these initiatives have not been effective. The primary means used to fight fires is through the ground stations, which are spread throughout various parts of the county. The other means is through use of small fire units and the home fire safety checks. These two methods are primarily used to complement the efforts of the ground stations. Some of these safety measures have however contributed to increased incidence rates rather than reducing them. For instance, faulty fire alarms were responsible for 18% of the incidents recorded during the four years. Nevertheless, the decision by the facility’s management to use small but effective fire units that operate during peak hours is a recommendable move by the firefighting facility. These units have effectively managed to respond to fire incidents that could have prompted heavy firefighting operations. While secondary fires were the major cause of incidents in the county during the four years, the ability of the facility to rapidly mobilize the small units led to significant reduction in the occurrence of this type of fires. Records indicate that the mobilization of the small fire units improved significantly during the four years period and this was responsible for the notable reduction of fire incidents during this period as compared to the previous periods. The use of home fire safety checks was a highly fruitful decision by the management. Although these checks proved counterproductive in some instances, they were ideally good in pointing out the likely regions that are vulnerable to fire. The management took appropriate measures to ensure that the checks worked as desired and helped rectify any faulty conditions. Merseyside County increased considerably, and contributed to the notable decline in the number of incidents observed during this period. In boroughs like the South Port where there was the heaviest concentration of home safety checks, there was a proportional drop in incidents of false automatic fire alarms. The South Port was also among the areas that recorded the highest drop in the number of fire incidents during the 2004/2005-2007/2008 period. The main reason for installing fire alarms was to ensure that rescue teams are instantly informed whenever any incident occurs so that they can respond appropriately. But the many alarms that have given false information and prompted wrong action to be taken are a major concern to the rescue teams. In fact, it can be difficult for fire rescue teams to decide whether a fire alarm is real or false and hence it takes time for the rescue teams to mobiles the necessary equipments and personnel for fighting the fires (Astone, Maxwel & Gurrib, 2010). In areas like the City Centre and Kirkdale where the concentration of false alarms was highest during the four year period, fires to commercial and residential properties were quite dominant. As such, the false alarms severely hindered the ability of rescue teams to respond to real fires. The rapid rise in incident of false fore alarms at Eccleston, Heswall and Low Hill among other areas indicates a worrying trend in these areas as the false alarms impended the efforts of rescue teams to give prompt response. Management of information is an important issue as regards management of fire risks (Whate, 2009) Given the expanse of Mersyside County and the large number of people that reside in the county, it is important that an apt communication framework is put in place to facilitate sharing of information between the public and the authorities. Lilian and Agella (2011) have asserted that it is important for organizations to develop means of responding to the issues affecting society effectively as need arises. The high number of fire incidents recorded at the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service is chiefly due to poor coordination of information between the people and the firefighting facility. In general, there was poor response to fire outbreaks and this perhaps caused the incidents to escalate during the 4 years period. The presence of good communication between the firefighting management team and the entire Merseyside community will be a substantial progress in controlling incidents of fire outbreaks. It is therefore important to make the members of the public aware of the actions that should be taken in case of fire outbreak. The community should also be informed of the firefighting facilities available in their respective areas of resident (Hilton, Tally & Mercy, 2004). Strategies for Reducing Fire in Merseyside County Given the high incidence rate of fire outbreaks in Merseyside, it is imperative that a number of strategies are initiated to prevent the occurrence of fires. The best strategies for reducing the incidents of fires in Merseyside should be aimed at eliminating the elements and situations which make the county vulnerable to fires and accelerate a steady reduction in the rate of fires. In particular, the automated fire alarms should be redesigned such that they do not give false signals, which complicate the efforts by the facility to respond appropriately to fires. According to Whate (2009) properly designed and configured fire alarms are not likely to give misleading signals. It is, therefore, recommended that authorities at the facility conduct a detailed research on the ways of configuring these devices to reduce the high number of false alarms. In addition, the authorities should periodically inspect the devices to ensure that they are working properly and are not likely to give misleading indications of fire. Hilton, Tally and Mercy (2004) have explained that the best strategy in areas with high incidents of false alarms is to set up multiple alarms and monitoring units. This will prevent faulty alarms from giving false alarms. Essentially, elimination of the incidents of false alarms will be a vital measure in reduction of fire risks in Merseyside County. It is also important to use fire danger rating systems. These systems can be used to effectively determine the levels of danger posed by fires and can also serve as an advance warning system for serious fires risks. Use of smoke detectors in houses and fire inspection are also important strategies for preventing the risks posed by fire hazards. In expansive regions like Merseyside County, active involvement of the communities in collecting and dissemination of fire information and warnings can help create ownership and increased communal responsibility as regards fire prevention and awareness. It is, therefore, important for the authorities to train people especially members of the public on the various ways of controlling and preventing fire outbreaks (Whate, 2009). This can be a life-saving strategy especially in areas that have high susceptibility to secondary fires, more especially those which have a high concentration of commercial and residential buildings. Most of the secondary fires occurring in Merseyside arise from negligence and cause serious damages to properties and even loss of lives. Accordingly, the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service facility should institute programs for educating people on ways of avoiding activities and engagements that may endanger the neighborhoods. In light of this consideration, the communities living in Merseyside should be equipped with basic firefighting equipment so that in case of a likely fire outbreak, they can prevent it from spreading instead of waiting for the firefighters. Training programs should be incorporated with the programs for installing small fire prevention units and home fire safety checks. By engaging the community in such an important initiative, the Merseyside fire and rescue service will incredibly encourage the people to contribute towards risk reduction, which will lead to general improvements of healthy standards in the area. Conclusion During the 2004/2005-207/2008 period, Merseyside County experienced a high number of fires, although this was a significant drop in relation to the previous 4 year period. Two-fifths of the fires were of the secondary type and these resulted from garbage fires, derelict buildings and cars and bonfires. Another one fifth of fire incidents recorded were due to false alarms. The high number of fire incidents prompted the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service to institute various initiatives and strategies for preventing the occurrence of similar incidents. The fire fighting and rescue facility relied on the use of ground fire stations to contain fire incidents. To a small extent, small fire units and home fire safety checks were also used to fight fires. All these efforts proved effective in fighting fires, although their use was not all that much satisfactorily. The high rate of false alarms severely hampered efforts by rescue teams respond to fire incidents. Therefore, elimination of false alarms will be an important step in improving the facility’s alarm response capacity. It is also important to offer basic fire fighting training to the communities living in Merseyside and install efficient communication systems in the County. References Astone M, Maxwel, S & Gurrib, M 2010, ‘Managing Fire In Urban Areas’, Journal of Risk Management, Vol. 2, no.1, pp. 98-73. Hilton, K, Tally, M & Mercy, S 2004, ‘Fire control and management,’ International Risk Management, Vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 874-900. Lilian, A & Agella, T 2011, ‘ Organization operations, Disaster management in Taiwan, Vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 400-452. Whate, J 2009, ‘Fire management’, Disaster Management, Vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 342-347. Read More