Domestic Fire Hazard in New Zealand

Abstract

This report presents features of domestic fires within New Zealand over the period 1986 to 1994 inclusive. It consists of an analysis of the New Zealand Fire Incident Reporting System (FIRS) that the Fire Service completes for every incident it responds to. Areas investigated are the area of fire origin, equipment involved in ignition, form of heat of ignition, type of material first ignited, form of material first ignited, and the ignition factor or cause. Features of the casualties such as their location at the time of injury, activity at time of injury, day of week injured, time of day injured, and age of those injured have been investigated. A literature search of socio-economic features that affect the incidence of domestic fires and the effectiveness of smoke alarms is included.