21

May
2016

Is Your Building Fire Safe?

May 21st, 2016 | by admin admin | in Security Advice |    0   

More than 100 people lost their home overnight on May 14 when a fire at a construction site in White Rock spread to a nearby apartment complex. Although fire engulfed the buildings, there were no reports of injuries.

Such a catastrophic blaze is why high-occupancy buildings must comply with strict fire regulations. Many owners and managers, and condo residents, however, may not be aware of their building’s fire safety requirements. For example, North Vancouver’s By-Law 8090 requires all multi-unit residential buildings—like the apartment building in White Rock or any condo tower—to have compliant fire alarm systems installed.

And, according to the B.C. Building Code and local by-laws, fire monitoring is mandatory for any building in Metro Vancouver that

• Has an occupancy load over 300
• Has an automatic fire sprinkler system, OR
• Has a two-stage fire alarm system

By-Law 8090 in North Vancouver specifies monitoring by an Underwriters Laboratory of Canada (ULC) Listed Monitoring Station. Radius’ parent company, Vancouver Fire, operates one of the few ULC Listed Monitoring Stations in the Lower Mainland—and is the only local fire protection company to also provide installation and inspection services.

So, is your building up to code? Do you have the appropriate fire suppression systems installed? Do you schedule proper inspections as required by law? And have you considered the efficiencies of using a fire monitoring company that can also take care of installation, inspection, maintenance and repair if any issues come up?

If you’re not sure how to answer these questions, Vancouver Fire’s web site (www.vanfire.com) is a good place to start. There, you’ll find plenty of good information about fire protection installations, inspections and monitoring. Sprinklers, alarms, extinguishers, backflow preventers and much more. Learn what fire protection systems you need, when and how they need to be inspected, and how to make sure help comes when anything goes wrong.

And in case you were wondering what could go wrong…

Note: This blog discusses general safety and security topics. It is not intended to provide comprehensive advice or guidance. In all matters of personal safety and security, we encourage readers to research topics in depth and consult a security professional about specific concerns.

Radius Security Vancouver, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond, Surrey, Langley, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Ladner, Delta, Tsawwassen

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