Aico Ltd - Fire death statistics prompt calls for greater alarm coverage

Aico Ltd, the UK's leading provider of mains powered smoke alarms, is calling for greater alarm coverage in homes following new information on fire deaths revealed by Fire Statistics United Kingdom 2005.

The statistics reveal that 52% of all fatalities occurred in the room where the fire started, which is why Aico is now suggesting LD2 level systems as Best Practice. This means an additional heat alarm in the kitchen and a further heat or smoke alarm in the main living area, which is the greatest single source of fire deaths; all four alarms are interconnected.

Because of the alarming number of deaths in the bedroom - 63% of people killed in a fire which started in the bedroom actually died in the bedroom - siting an additional smoke alarm in the principal bedroom to protect sleepers and warn them of danger more quickly, would help to resolve this risk.

Interconnection of alarms has been problematic in the past as it's time consuming, more expensive than stand alone alarms and may be messy, costly and hugely disruptive to the resident. However, with Aico's RadioLINK wireless interconnect system, interconnection is now easier and more economical as a radio signal is used to operate the interconnect feature. Such a system makes
wider alarm coverage a more viable proposition.

"If we seriously want to cut the number of fire deaths and injuries in the UK," states Neil Perdell, Technical Product Manager of Aico, "we must increase the number of alarms in the home and ensure all are interconnected to provide immediate warning everywhere in the property. In the past, the argument against interconnection and more numerous alarms has been the sheer cost and disruption caused by hard wiring everything together. However, new technology such as Aico's RadioLINK wireless interconnect alarms means that this is no longer the case."

Email: julie@publicityoverload.co.uk