BACKYARD SHEDS UNDER THREAT

Auckland September 1, 2008 - That suburban hideout of Kiwi males, the backyard shed, is under threat because most lack even the most basic firefighting tool, a fire extinguisher.
 
Modern backyard sheds, with their volatile mix of fuels and oils, paints and solvents, plastics, camping gear, even home welding kits, can be a real fire hazard.
 
Shed fires represent a major challenge for the fire services and have the potential to threaten not just the family home but also the neighbour’s.
 
“This Father’s Day, as well as buying Dad a new power tool or other piece of equipment for his shed, put a fire extinguisher and a smoke alarm or two into his gift pack,” Gary Diggs, general manager, Chubb Fire and Services, said.
 
“The loss of a treasured shed, and all the equipment and bits and pieces accumulated over a lifetime of projects and tasks, can be devastating,” Mr Diggs said.
 
“Having a fire extinguisher at hand gives that added peace of mind, knowing that if matters do get out of hand or an accident occurs, people can respond quickly and save their treasures and their shed.
 
“The Quell suite of extinguishers ranges from the small 1kg size, ideal for smaller sheds and storage areas, up to the large 2.5kg unit, which caters for bigger sheds, especially those used for larger scale construction or mechanical projects.
 
“Quell also offers training courses so that people can become familiar with extinguishers and build their confidence in their use so that should they be confronted with an emergency they can respond quickly and appropriately.
 
“Smoke detectors are also vital in the protection of sheds and are ideal for alerting people to hazards they might otherwise miss while they are focused on other things.
 
“Smoke alarms are ideal for sheds because they can detect smouldering fires, the type that occur, for example, when soldering irons and other heat sources are inadvertently left switched on.”
 
Quell fire extinguishers and smoke detectors are available at all major hardware outlets.

Media contact:
Daniel Marks
09 362 3692
Daniel.marks@fs.utc.com