FIRE PREVENTION WEEK! This year's theme from NFPA is
"Smoke Alarms Save Lives: Test Yours Every Month." IAAI believes that
as one of the leaders in industry, we have an obligation to share this message
and continue to promote fire safety and prevention.
Most of the work of our members occurs after the fire, but
that does not PREVENT us (pun intended) from being part of the fire prevention
team. In fact, determining the cause of a fire, and in some cases the person or
persons responsible, leads to fire prevention.
In the case of an incendiary fire, getting the responsible
parties off the street and behind bars, for the public sector, keeps them from
setting another fire and serves as a deterrent to others who might think they
can get away with a similar act. In the
private sector it may be winning the claim denial case that sends the message.
Just as importantly, when there is an accidental fire there
is an opportunity for prevention of future incidents. These opportunities may
come in the form of identifying a product that may need to be the subject of a
recall or of a human act that we can identify and target for prevention. The
important key, however, is that we cannot compartmentalize the information. In
order to be used as a tool for prevention, we need to share what we have
learned.
That said, it does not mean that we violate anyone’s privacy
or rights, but there are ways to share the safety message without divulging
private or proprietary information. If you are not actively using the findings
of your investigation to prevent future incidents, we here at IAAI encourage
you to start.
www.nfpa.org/safety-information/fire-prevention-week