1. THE FACILITIES MANAGER AND FIRE OUTBREAKS
It was distressing to read on the BBC website on 21st
February, 2015 about the
fire outbreak the engulfed the Torch Skyscraper in Dubai known to be one of
the tallest residential buildings in the world. The property is reported to be
home to expatriates from around the globe who have found work opportunities
in the city known for its ambitious futuristic vision of becoming a world
economic powerhouse. As I read on, I was immediately relieved to know that
there were no causalities and was really impressed at the quick response of the
emergency services team that prevented the fire from escalating. As a
facilities manager, I could not help but empathize with my colleague at Torch
Tower and I found myself thinking about how you prepare for emergencies and
pray they never happen. I have thus found it necessary to remind us about the
bare basics of fire prevention and risk assessments to eliminate and mitigate
possible fire outbreaks both at the workplace and in residential buildings.
The Fire Triangle. As at the time of writing this piece, the cause of the fire
had not been established but one thing was made clear; strong winds helped
the fire spread. It is common knowledge that fire needs 3 factors to come alive
and these are 1) Heat – a spark, an ignition or increased temperature above
tolerable levels for different materials can start a fire in the presence of factor
number 2) Oxygen – the presence of oxygen in every area we can breathe
means a fire can start wherever there is human life, considerable heat and
material that can be destroyed by such heat which is factor number 3) Fuel –
anything at all that can be consumed or destroyed by fire. To successfully
eliminate or reduce the possibilities of a fire outbreak, one or two of the
stated factors must be removed from the other. These factors constitute what
is known as the fire triangle and they can be found very easily where we work
and live; this is why a continuous risk assessment is necessary.

2. Risk Assessment. As earlier mentioned, the reaction time of the emergency
services team was commendable and this is a reflection of how well they were
prepared for such an occurrence. There are legal responsibilities in the UK (and
I believe in all other countries) on people managing the premises to take
reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of a fire outbreak and ensure
the safety of lives. Every measure starts with risk assessments by identifying
hazards, calculating the risks and outlining what to do to eliminate or mitigate
the risks. For Property or Facilities Management professionals, the safety of
the workspace and living areas is a priority, thus before settling in to other
duties that need their attention a quick site inspection (dynamic risk
assessment) is must. A detailed risk assessment program will highlight hazards;
ask the question of who can be harmed, state current remedial actions and
further actions to be taken. In addition, timelines for necessary actions are also
documented with the owner of the task.
To illustrate how regular risk assessments can avert disaster I will narrate a
personal experience. A company I worked for some years ago moved into a
newly renovated office building that had a lot of paintwork done among other
repairs and fixture replacements. The renovation work had hidden all signs of
potential hazards and all appeared to be well until I noticed a section of the
ceiling was changing colour during one of my regular building inspections. This
was the trademark of moisture, an intrusion of water, a hazard. One of the
risks was having water get to the electrics which could lead to a fire outbreak.
Two of the three factors (oxygen and fuel) of the fire triangle were in place
waiting for the ignition. Thankfully, a bad enough damaged had not been done
to start a fire. Further investigation revealed the toll the weather had taken on
parts of the roofing material which had given way to water from rainfalls that
seep into the ceiling. I consequently reviewed and revised my risk assessment
strategy. How I got my line manager to agree to my recommendations is a story
for another day.

3. Control Measures. Despite our best efforts, regular reviews and revisions of
risk assessments might not all together avert disasters. This is where we rely on
control measures to save life and property. There are a lot of control measures
that can be used; the most common among them are detection and warning
systems, fire fighting equipments, training of building users and building
design. A regular check of the fire alarms, smoke detectors and sprinklers need
to be done to be sure they are responsive when the need arises. The same
applies to the fire extinguishers which legislation states must be available in all
buildings in adequate quantities (UK FM’s can refer to BS 9999 code of practice
for fire safety in the design, management and use of buildings). The training of
building users is vital. Staffs that use chemicals need to be trained on the
control of substances hazardous to health (wrong use and poor storage of
chemicals can start a fire) and selected staff need to be trained as fire
marshals. In the event of a fire outbreak it is important that there are people
who know what to do and how to help others escape the fire. Training building
users also includes organizing fire drills. It is understandable that some
organizations are reluctant to have a drill more than once a year because of
the cost implications to the business. Facilities Managers need to rely on their
charm, wit and influencing skills to ensure that fire drills are done at least
once a year. Finally, escape routes and assembly points need to be checked
regularly to ensure they are not blocked and can be easily accessed.
Eliminating and mitigating fire outbreaks is a key area in ensuring health and
safety in the workplace and residential buildings. Property and Facilities
Managers wear a lot of hats and they will do well to update their knowledge
and skills through trainings and active participation in their various professional
bodies like BIFM and IFMA. I hope the lessons learnt from the fire outbreak at
the Torch Towers in Dubai will help prevent future occurrences and I wish the
facilities management team over there all the best as they work on repairing

4. the damage done. I leave you with a quote from someone I do not know but I
trust will get you appreciating your job, it goes thus:
“An ideal facility manager must have Aristotle’s logic and Solomon’s wisdom,
a priest’s discretion and a gambler’s poker face, a lawyer’s shrewdness and a
marketing director’s charm, a gladiator’s guts, a marathon runner’s
perseverance and a sprinter’s speed, a leatherneck’s toughness and a dancer’s
agility, lots of good luck and 30 hours per day.”
- Anonymous
By
Adebowale O. Omole, CBIFM
(Adebowale is an experienced facilities & property management professional passionate about
building safety and sustainability. He is based in Swansea, Wales and enjoys investigating
problems and recommending lasting solutions. He can be contacted via email:
debowaleo@gmail.com)
References and further reading:
1. UK Government (2011). Generic Risk Assessments 3.1: Fighting Fires in
Buildings. TSO Information & Publishing Solutions. Retrieved from
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_
data/file/105747/3.1_fighting_fires.pdf
2. London Fire Brigade (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.london-
fire.gov.uk/Documents/Fire_safety_arrangements.pdf
3. Safety Services Company (2015) -
http://www.safetyservicescompany.com/topic/training/fire-prevention-
in-your-workplace-getting-better-fire-safety-measures/
4. Welland, T. (2010, June 3). Acting on Assessment. Retrieved from
http://www.fm-world.co.uk/good-practice-legal/legal-articles/acting-
on-assessment/

5. 5. British Broadcasting Corporation (2015, February 21) – Fire in 336m
Dubai Residential Skyscraper. Retrieved from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-31563894

6. 5. British Broadcasting Corporation (2015, February 21) – Fire in 336m
Dubai Residential Skyscraper. Retrieved from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-31563894