Washington, D.C. – A technical review of a Florida house fire that killed six people – five of them children under age seven – is being released by the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today. According to the review, the lack of a working smoke alarm allowed the fire to become so intense that rescuing the victims was impossible.
“Any fire fatality is a tragedy, but a fire that claims the lives of five children is a tragedy in the extreme,” said Michael D. Brown, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response. “The tragedy is all the worse because it might have been prevented if there was a working smoke alarm in the home.”
The review, compiled by the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), stressed the importance of smoke alarms, notably in fires that occur when residents would be asleep. The local fire department had an aggressive public education program that included free smoke alarms and batteries, but demand was not great; interest in the items increased significantly after the fire.
“Data collected by USFA shows clearly there can be deadly consequences when fires occur at night in houses without functioning smoke alarms,” said US Fire Administrator R. David Paulison. “Smoke alarms are inexpensive and easy to install, and easy to check and keep operational. They are the closest thing to having a firefighter on duty in your home 24 hours a day.”
USFA develops reports on selected major fires and emergencies, usually involving multiple deaths or a large loss of property. The objective reviews are intended to uncover significant “lessons learned” or new knowledge about firefighting or to underscore ongoing issues in fire service. USFA, which has no regulatory authority, sends an experienced fire investigator to the community after a major incident only after conferring with local fire authorities.
The two-story, single-family home in St. Cloud, Fla., caught on fire early in the morning of June 21, 2001, after a plugged in battery charger became covered with clothing and ignited.
Ten firefighters responded to the initial alarm and arrived within four minutes of dispatch. Additional equipment and personnel were subsequently dispatched due to the magnitude of the fire, but rescue attempts were impossible. Of the house’s eight residents, seven were home at the time of the fire and all but one died. The youngest victim was a 22-month-old girl.
A copy of the full report can be downloaded by going to: http://www.usfa.fema.gov/fire-service/techreports/tr142.shtm.
