Introduction to Fire Safety Management

Arson also often occurs during tea or lunch break
times, when few staff are present, again reducing
the likelihood of the arsonist being seen. This can
be combated by introducing tighter entrance control
measures and raising staff awareness.
Buildings/sites at risk
When considering the initial design and layout of a
building, those with areas that allow a person to linger
(an arsonist) unseen present a high risk as do those that
have access to the roof. These areas can be designed
out at this stage if appropriate thought is applied. These
issues should also be taken into account when considering
temporary sites such as in construction work, where
layouts of site accommodation and building operations,
stores, vehicle pounds, etc. must also take into account
security against arson.
In many cases the employers or occupiers of a
building have had little or no input or control over the
design of the premises in which they work, therefore
basic measures to prevent access to the roof or other
areas of the building must be considered. Simple
controls such as the inclusion of a dense, thorny
hedgerow at the perimeter of the site may assist in
preventing access and the environment of the premises
may also be enhanced by such an introduction.
Priority should be given to keeping arsonists
out, especially when the premises are not occupied.
Attention must be paid to primary control measures
like the siting and security of windows, doors, locking
mechanisms, fences and gates.
Weak points in building perimeter protection that
should be considered may include letter boxes, air vents
and louvered windows.
The poor management of access keys can also add
to the risk and therefore the security programme must
Figure 8.10 CCTV with infrared lights reduce the likelihood
of arson attack
Causes and prevention of fi re
include accountability for keys and proper authorisation
for their issue. A register should be maintained of all key/
access issues and all keys/cards accounted for at the
end of each period of work.
Entry to isolated or less used parts of the premises,
such as storerooms and warehouses, should be
restricted and monitored. In addition suitable arrangements
must be taken to identify legitimate visitors or,
where appropriate, restrict the areas to which members
of the public have access.
Where buildings or sites are unoccupied at night or
at weekends, serious consideration should be given to
the installation of CCTV as it has a high deterrent effect.
It should be noted that CCTV systems which are not
monitored have limited value.
The equipment used must be of a high quality and
be installed to suit the prevailing conditions and should
incorporate suitable recording equipment. Specialist
advice should be sought before installation to ensure the
correct system is fi tted.
Frequent, but irregular visits by mobile security
patrols outside normal working hours can be a deterrent
against arson and similar crimes, if there is no 24-hour
security presence on the site.
If used, security staff should be vigilant and take
note of such crimes in the neighbourhood, this is a
particularly good indicator of a security company’s
competency if they have such information readily available.
Keeping a log of such incidents may help in assessing
the likelihood of an arson attack occurring.
Perhaps one of the most cost-effective measures
against the arsonist is an alert and motivated workforce.
All staff should be reminded to challenge those they do
not know. It may be that a simple ‘Can I help you?’ may
be suffi cient to deter a potential arsonist.
Figure 8.11 Risk of arson may increase when companies
are targeted by political activists
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