"Employees were using on site fire hoses to contain the fire..."

An effective emergency action plan should take into account a range of emergencies. Only through education, training, and practice drills can a facility be prepared to handle any emergency. Here is a recent story that emphasizes the continued need for effective emergency plans.

Firefighters extinguished a fire at Nemack on the Sheboygan, Wisconsin during one morning during the week of March 2, 2014.

Around 6:30 AM, the Sheboygan Fire Department responded to a report of a fire inside the building located.

Firefighters arriving on scene found heavy black smoke coming from roof vents and additional firefighters were requested. Nemack employees were using on site fire hoses to contain the fire according to Sheboygan Fire Department Shift Commander. Firefighters then evacuated the building, and the fire was quickly extinguished.

Firefighters found a considerable amount of smoke and fire near the point of entry. The fire was contained and extinguished. The fire was limited to a maintenance area. There were no injuries sustained by employees or firefighters. No damage estimate was available as of the following morning.

Congratulations to Nemack for contacting the fire department immediately. In contrast the Aluminium Plant Safety Blog has posted incidents where plant personnel tried to put out a fire prior to calling for help. That mistake commonly results in injuries and greater facility damage which can be minimized if not prevented when the local fire department is contacted immediately.

After contacting the fire department, Nemack personnel manned fire hoses to contain the fire until the Sheboygan Fire Department arrived. Afterwards the Nemack personnel were evacuated and the Sheboygan Fire Department quickly put the fire out.

Can anyone in your plant grab a fire extinguisher or a fire hose and try to extinguish a fire? The answer is no. Only personnel who are trained and identified in the emergency action plan should use a fire extinguisher or a fire hose. Also, it is recommended that trained personnel be retrained, and/or tested (to confirm competentness) at minimum once a year.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has a useful document "Titled How To Plan For Workplace Emergencies and Evacuations". Which can be found here:

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