Facts about the fire

FIRE:

Fire was discovered by ancient man

during the Lower Paleolithic period. Since

then Fire has been an important part of

human settlements, cultures and religions,

from pre-history to modern day, and was vital

for the development of civilization. It was

commonly associated with the qualities of

energy, assertiveness, and passion. The

word agni is Sanskrit for "fire", and has three forms: fire, lightning and the sun.

FIRE HAZARD:

A fire hazard is any situation in which there is a greater than normal risk of harm to

people or property due to fire. Fire hazards include things which, in the event of fire, pose

a hazard to people, such as materials that produce toxic fumes when heated or objects

that block fire exits.

Fire hazards can take the form of ways that fires can easily start, such as a blocked

cooling vent, or overloaded electrical system, ways fires can spread rapidly, such as an

insufficiently protected fuel store or areas with high oxygen concentrations.

HISTORY OF FIRE SERVICES:

The following are some of the land marks of development in the history of Fire Services

• 321 BC - In Kautilya’s Arthashastra there were chapters about Fire Preventive Rules

• 27-14 BC - Fire Station concept of Augustus Caesar in Roman Empire.

• 1027 A.D - Fire Preventive Codes by King William-I

• 1666 A.D - Great London Fire.

• Modern Fire and Rescue Services.

CLASSIFICATION OF FIRE: (According to ISI - 2190/1979)

The classification of fire is done according to the material by which the fire is caused.

1. Class 'A' Fires:

These are fires involving solid materials, normally of carbon compounds in which combustion

generally occurs with the formation of glowing embers. These types of fires are most

common. Example - Wood, rags, paper, plastic, coal etc.

2. Class 'B' Fires:

These fires involve flammable liquids or liquefiable solids. That is, fires occurring in vapor-air

mixture over the surface of flammable liquids, such as gasoline, oils, paints, thinners, ghee,

fats, petroleum products etc.

3. Class 'C' Fires:

These are fires involving liquefiable gases like Propane, Butane, LPG, H2, Acetalene etc.

4. Class 'D' Fires :

These are fires that occur in combustible metals such as magnesium, titanium, sodium etc.

These burning metals react with water and water containing agent.

CURRENT STATUS AND TRENDS OF FIRE INCIDENTS:

Fire incidents can be classified according to the material that causes fire, the intensity of

damage, the type of buildings that were damaged etc. The current trend of fire incidents in

Metro cities shows an increasing in number of fire incidents. The following are some of the

current status of fire incidents in some of the metro cities in India.

1) DELHI:

According to Delhi Fire Service statistics, Delhi had more

than 75,000 fire incidents during 1995-96 to 1999-2000,

resulting in more than 1825 deaths, injuries to more than

7,600 persons and loss of property valuing more than

Rupees 176 crores. The Delhi state has a special Act for

Fire prevention called as “Delhi Fire Prevention and Fire

Safety Act, 1986”

Some of the major fire incidents in Delhi are:

_ Lal Kuan fire

_ Gandhi Market, Sadar bazaar fire, 1990.

_ Siddartha Hotel, Jan 1986.

_ Uphaar Cinema, June 1997

2) CHENNAI :

According to Tamilnadu Fire Service

statistics, Chennai had more than 8950 fire

incidents during the last five years (2001 to

2006), resulting in more than 31 deaths,

loss of property valuing more than Rupees

10.39 crores.

The following are some of the major fire incidents that happened in Chennai:

• LIC Building Fire, Chennai (11th July 1975)

• Fire In Spencer Buildings (13th February 1981)

• Moore Market, Chennai (30th May, 1985)

• Fire In Air France Aircraft (5th March, 1999)

• Fire In General Post Office, Chennai (23 October 2000)