Fike Twinflex fire protection saves lives in Blackpool

Fike Twinflex fire protection saves lives in Blackpool

Just three days after it was installed and commissioned, a Fike Twinflex fire alarm system in a Blackpool apartment block provided early warning of a fire, giving time for the building to be evacuated and the fire successfully extinguished without harm to the occupants of the premises.

The alarm system was designed and installed by Blackpool based DD Fire Alarms. Initially, DD Fire Alarms was called in to refurbish the existing fire alarm installation at the apartment block, but after examining it the company determined that it would be difficult and costly to repair and also that, even if it was brought back into full working order, it would not meet current regulatory requirements.

DD Fire Alarms therefore proposed that a completely new fire alarm system, based on Fike Twinflex products, should be installed. The landlord of the apartment block, mindful of the need to safeguard his tenants and his property, agreed to proceed on this basis.

The Twinflex two wire system has a built-in alarm confirmation delay feature that is particularly useful for houses in multiple occupation (HMOs). This is typically configured so that fire signals from the common areas or from manual call points immediately sound the alarms throughout the premises. In contrast, a fire signal from an automatic detector in an individual apartment initially sounds the alarm just in that apartment. Only if the fire signal from the apartment persists for more than a minute are the alarms sounded throughout the building.

This arrangement, which complies fully with Part 1 and Part 6 of BS5839, is useful as a fire signal from a single apartment may well mean nothing more than someone has burnt their toast, in which case raising a general alarm is unnecessary and disruptive.

At the Blackpool apartment block, DD Fire Alarms completed the installation of the Twinflex system on a Friday evening and on the following Monday the system was actuated by a fire in one of the apartments. On entering this apartment, the other residents of the building found that the occupant had set fire to a duvet and, in an unsuccessful attempt to smother the fire, had rolled the duvet up. This made it difficult to tackle the fire with a conventional handheld extinguisher.

The fire brigade had, however, been summoned and on arrival were able to deal with the problem quickly. Because the Twinflex system had detected the fire and sounded the alarm so promptly, damage was minor and was restricted to the apartment where the fire had occurred, and the occupant suffered no lasting ill effects.

As a result of this incident, the fire brigade carried out an investigation that included an evaluation of the new Twinflex alarm system. They confirmed that this had played a major role in limiting the impact of the fire, that it fully met current legislative requirements, and that it was ideally suited to providing effective and dependable protection in HMOs.

‘This incident confirms beyond all doubt that reliable alarm systems in HMOs save lives,’ said Darren Johnson, managing director of DD Fire Alarms, ‘and it has certainly proved convincing for many other landlords and property owners in the Blackpool area.’

You May Also Like

Temporary renewals implemented for CSCS Cards

The Association of Technical Lightning & Access Specialists’ (ATLAS) Council has voted in favour ...

Free technical webinar for contractors

Free technical webinar for contractors Don’t miss out on the opportunity to join more ...

GoodWe launches new range of solar PV panels

GoodWe is launching a new range of building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) solar panels into ...