Fire brigade to inspect Hartlepool businesses and flats amid safety concerns

Cleveland Fire Brigade will be running a month -ong Safer Business campaign from next week after figures show that 86% of businesses that have a fire never recover.

The move is part of the National Fire Chief Councils annual Business Safety Week, which runs from September 6 to 12, and the brigade will be will be leafleting outlets before a day of visits across Hartlepool on Tuesday, September 14, to carry out inspections and offer advice.

In the Cleveland Fire Brigade area, 29 out of the current 43 active prohibition notices have been served to restrict sleeping above commercial premises on safety grounds and businesses will also be reminded to check their fire alarms are working properly in a bid to reduce the number of false call-outs.

Joe Flounders, the brigade’s head of fire engineering, said: “Your business is our business and we are here to help keep businesses open but property and lives are at risk if fire safety requirements are not implemented or followed.

“The risks are higher where shops and other retail outlets have people sleeping within their premises. The short time invested in carrying out a fire risk assessment could save the lives of employees, customers and keep the business open.”

It is a legal requirement to carry out a fire risk assessment to identify the general fire precautions required to ensure business premises are safe. Failure to comply could result in enforcement action.

For further information, go to www.clevelandfire.gov.uk/business-advice/.