User Manual

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2.5.5 Disaster recovery plan
The first priority is obviously to prevent fire occurring and
suppress any potential fire in the incipient stage of its
development. However, all colleges and universities
should have a disaster recovery plan. As soon as the initial
trauma of dealing with the fire is over and the extent of
the damage can be assessed, priority must be given to
getting back to the normal timetable. While the necessary
renovation work is in progress temporary classrooms may
be needed, or rooms in other buildings rented; damaged
or lost books and teaching aids must be replaced etc.
The disaster recovery plan should include:
 Details of people who can help in an emergency
 Information on suppliers
 Inventory data
 How media and parent enquiries will be handled
2.6 Particular challenges
What are the particular challenges facing security
managers in education facilities and how should these
threats be addressed? Fire service statistics indicate
that in comparison with other sectors the two standout
issues are:
 False alarms – particularly in universities and
especially in student accommodation
 Arson – particularly in schools for pupils under
the age of 18 (see Appendix A - Schools)
 Carelessness – failure to obey house regulations
in student accommodation
2.6.1 False alarm complacency
Universities are one of the most common culprits when
it comes to causing false alarms. Fire brigade statistics
indicate that in many cities student accommodation
accounts for a very high proportion of callouts that turn
out to be false alarms. This is not only a cost factor and
a wasteful use of the fire services’ time, it can be very
frustrating for the inhabitants when the fire alarm is
sounded several times per month and everyone has to
evacuate the building. It is not surprising that this often
leads to complacent behavior amongst the students and a
reluctance to leave the building yet again “for another
false alarm”. In fact, this behavior was cited as being a
contributory factor in the deaths of three students in the
fire at Seton Hall University (2000).
This is a depressing statistic, as large numbers of false
alarms are completely unnecessary. The actions and
behavior of some students can contribute to the problems,
when fire safety regulations are willfully ignored.
However, the enforcement of these regulations and the
installation of appropriate fire detectors in the appropriate
locations can practically eliminate false alarms and restore
the trust in the fire protection system.
2.6.2 Arson
Although arson is one of the major causes of fire in
schools (see Appendix), there are considerably fewer
incidents in higher education facilities. There is no reason
for complacency, however, as the case in the University of
Heilbronn (July, 2015) shows. The cost of this particular
arson attack was estimated at € 300,000 and this could
easily have been considerably higher, but for the prompt
intervention of the local fire service.
2.6.2 Carelessness
The group dynamics in student accommodation (often
accentuated by the effects of alcohol etc.) can often lead
to somewhat thoughtless actions, which individual
students would probably never make under normal
circumstances. One example is the lack of concentration
while cooking, which is a common factor in numerous fire-
related incidents.
The strict enforcement of house-rules and compulsory
attendance of a fire-safety induction course can go a long
way to raising the awareness of the consequences of
careless behavior. House rules should include clear
guidelines and recommended best practices on the
following issues:
 Cooking
 Never leave cooking unattended
 Regularly clean toasters and grills etc
 Hair care
 Use hair sprays in bathrooms only
 Use electrical hair straighteners (or curlers)
in bathrooms only and unplug after use
 Electrical equipment
 Do not overload power sockets (e.g. by stacking
multi-way adapters without internal fuses). For
low-power devices such as PC’s, monitors, printers
etc., the use of correctly rated power strips with
integrated fuses or thermal cutouts is
recommended
 Take care when using electrical appliances in the
bedrooms and make sure they are switched off
when not in use
The group dynamic,
together with the effects
of alcohol and recreational
drugs, can lead to
thoughtless actions that
may create potentially
dangerous situations.