Thankfully, hotel fires are a rare occurrence. One of the reasons for this is that we are trained to know what could cause a fire and what we can do to prevent a fire from occurring.
A fire needs three things to start: oxygen, fuel, and heat. Any situation where heat sources and fuel are uncontrolled is regarded as a fire hazard.
Think about your own department for a minute and ask yourself what are the three biggest fire hazards near where you work.
1. Electricity can be a heat source and therefore a fire hazard.
Never overload a plug socket by connecting two or more multi-plug power strips together in order to increase the number of plugs.
Inspect outlets and electrical cords periodica lly for dama ge. Equipment with damaged wiring should be tagged “out of service” until the wiring can be repaired or replaced. Discuss with your supervisor other electrical hazards in your work area.
2. Poor storage
Because trash, boxes, and combustible materials can all act as fuel for a fire, always keep work areas, aisles, stairways, and corridors clear of storage.
Combustible refuse should be removed from the building to the exterior dumpster as soon as possible. Do not store flammable items in unprotected areas, and always keep storage rooms neat and organized. Discuss with your supervisor what storage hazards you think may apply in your workplace.
3. Smoking
Dry cigarette butts should never be dumped into general refuse containers that could contain combustible materials (such as paper, plastic, or wood). Instead, always wet the contents of an ashtray before emptying it to minimise the chance of a lit cigarette butt causing a fire. As a further precaution, always empty guestroom ashtrays into the toilet, and empty cigarette receptacles into a metallic bin as opposed to a combustible bin.
Employees should only smoke in designated areas, and always ask guests to kindly do the same.
4. Chemicals
Flammable liquid storage should be kept to a minimum. This includes items such as gasoline, spray paint, aerosols, paint thinners, and oil based paints. Avoid purchasing more of these liquids than what is needed for planned projects and repairs.
Store flammable liquids in an approved flammable liquids storage cabinet when not in use. Because the vapors from these liquids are flammable, approved cabinets should be located in cool, ventilated areas of the hotel. Avoid locating cabinets in mechanical or electrical rooms.
Never mix chemicals.
5. Lint
Lint is highly combustible and can therefore easily lead to a fire.
Clean lint traps after every shift.
Clean the area behind the dryers weekly.
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