"There weren't any injuries.. we're investigating the cause of the fire..."

Fires can occur without warning. The importance of knowing what your plant’s evacuation plan cannot be understated. When was the last time that your plant had a fire drill?  If you cannot remember the month immediately, then it’s been too long. One needs to be scheduled (for each shift!). Afterwards, all the workers should be gathered together and a brief review of their actions should be conducted. Workers need to know where they performed as expected, as well as where they need improvement. Here is a recent story.

A fire broke out Thursday afternoon in an aluminum factory on Progress Avenue, causing the evacuation of hundreds of employees. 

The fire broke out just before 2 p.m. and briefly reached the second floor of the two-story building. Fire crews from around the area responded quickly, which resulted in a fast knock-down of the flames. 

“We had a lot of departments here and they knocked it down really quick,” said Cranberry Fire Department Sargent. 

Cranberry Fire Department Sargent said it was too preliminary to offer a cause of the fire. The sergeant said that the building, where aluminum is manufactured for architectural and commercial purposes, contains chemicals, but they were never in danger from the fire. The company, called Kawneer, is a division of Alcoa. There are several buildings in the complex but only one was damaged by the fire, although all of the buildings were evacuated. 

Employees remained outside for more than an hour before being allowed back inside. 
A spokesman for Alcoa said Thursday afternoon that more than 400 people work at the site. 

“There weren't any injuries and we're investigating the cause of the fire,” the spokesman said. “It was a small fire and it was extinguished, which is the important thing.” 

The Aluminium Plant Safety Blog congratulates this facility for a quick and orderly evacuation resulting in no injuries. We are also glad to see that the local fire department(s) quickly extinguished the fire.

Occupational Safety & Health Administration has a great document on evacuations. It can be found here.

Please comment.