Fire protection is a term that we have come to perhaps take for granted in our modern world. When the United States was first formed, especially as the country expanded westward, so many places of business were composed of wood. Something as small as a spark could ignite a blaze that could ruin a town completely.
The great Chicago fire of 1871 blazed for two days and was, allegedly, started by a cow that kicked over a small lantern. No one was prepared in those days for the kind of fire protection that they desperately needed. Luckily, these days we have the technology to keep people and property safer than we ever have been able to do before.
When we think of fires today, we certainly think of how we might save ourselves and our families if one broke out in our home. But when we think of fires in the world of business, one of the first places that might come to mind is the hotel industry.
Each year, hotel and motel fires cause the deaths of an average of 15 people and injure at least 150. The damage caused every year by fires, whether accidental or on purpose, results in a loss of roughly $76 million. The hotel industry has done and amazing job with fire prevention and fire protection. While those numbers might seem high–and even a single death or injury is too high–consider how many hotels and motels there are throughout the country.
Much of the credit for the fact that the injury and loss of life, as well as damage to property, has declined is due to the fire alarm systems that are being used today. Fire sprinkler systems that work as they are designed to work repel flames and save lives. In a recent study of fires, sprinklers operated in 91% of structures that had fires large enough to activate the installed sprinklers. In other words, if a building had proper fire extinguisher installation, the sprinkler system did its work to control the fire until the fire department and emergency services arrived.
When it comes to fire protection, it is sometimes easy to take for granted the success that we have had at diminishing the damaged done by fires in hotels, motels, and other buildings being used for business. The problem is, the reason we have had that success is due in large part to having the right kind of fire alarms and sprinklers install.
If you own a business, make sure you have exactly the kind of fire protection system you need to keep your business and, most importantly, people as safe as possible.