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Merseyside Fire and Rescue
Authority initiative helps fund sprinklers at a St Helens Hospital
A project which aims to increase the
number of buildings which have effective sprinkler systems in Merseyside has
seen sprinklers fitted at a St Helens mental health Hospital. The system
has been installed on Taylor and Iris Wards at Peasley Cross Hospital on
Marshalls Cross Road in St Helens as part of a Merseyside wide initiative to
protect vulnerable members of the community against the risk of fire. The
project, agreed by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority (MFRA) in 2014, aspires
to have at least one building in each of Merseyside's five districts retro
fitted with a sprinkler system. With a focus on making communities safer and
increasing the numbers of properties containing a sprinkler system across the
county, MFRA is working with:- businesses, healthcare providers, Schools and
housing providers to retro fit sprinkler systems to a number of large or complex
residential buildings. The sprinklers on Taylor and Iris Wards at Peasley
Cross Hospital, part of North West Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust,
will now help protect 32 patients at the 2 storey high building from fire.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority has agreed to contribute towards the cost
of installing the sprinklers, recognising the additional fire safety protection
they provide for users of the unit and firefighters when responding to any
potential future fires within the building. More information on the impact
and effectiveness of sprinklers can be found
online.
Group Manager Any Groom, who is leading on the
sprinkler project for MFRA, said:- "It has been great to work with North
West Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to fit sprinklers at Peasley Cross
Hospital. We have seen many fires in Merseyside where fitted sprinklers have
prevented the fire from spreading, limiting damage to owners and businesses,
allowing faster business recovery from potentially devastating fires and
ultimately saving both lives and livelihoods. Sprinklers provide a range of
benefits including environmental ones and, if more widely used, could
potentially save millions of pounds for our economy. MFRA believes more can be
done to promote the wider use of sprinklers in schools and domestic, commercial,
healthcare and residential premises and we continue to actively work towards
supporting this aim."
Mike Roscoe, Assistant Director at North West Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation
Trust, said:- "We'd like to thank Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority for
its kind contribution towards getting these sprinklers fitted on our wards which
have helped ensure our patients are better protected in the event of a fire.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority also worked with us to help ensure that the
sprinklers fitted are suitable for the environment on our wards."
MFRA Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Phil Garrigan,
said:- "The fitting of sprinklers in Peasley Cross Hospital's Taylor and
Iris Wards is a great step forward in helping to protect patients from fire.
MFRA is promoting the use of sprinklers in schools, commercial, healthcare and
residential buildings for a number of reasons. Firstly, they suppress fires and
contain them, which helps us when firefighters and crews arrive on scene and
contributes towards their safety. They also limit fire spread, protect occupants
and reduce fire damage to businesses, helping owners get back to normal quickly.
Greater use of fire sprinklers would make the country safer and more resilient." |
