London firefighters are encouraging all university freshers, who are moving out of home and into student halls of residence, to make sure they think about fire safety to avoid their first weeks going up in smoke.
Over the last five years, fire crews have attended 145 fires in student accommodation and halls of residence. One third of call outs for those studying at university in the capital are due to cooking. Key advice from firefighters is to turn off the heat before leaving the kitchen and never leave cooking unattended.
To reduce the number of call outs and prevent incidents, the Brigade has produced a toolkit to help students understand the key fire risks when living away from home for the first time. The toolkit has been shared with over 30 London institutions, as well as major accommodation providers, and includes fire safety resources for universities.
Students may consider e-bikes or e-scooters a cheaper and greener mode of transport to get around London quickly. However, fires involving lithium batteries are one of the fastest growing fire risks in London. The Brigade is keen to make sure students think twice about how they purchase, charge and store their device.
The dangers of blocking an escape route became a stark reality for a student living in Whitechapel. One of several e-bikes burst into flames in a hallway beside the front door of a flat. Student Adkham Sindorov credits firefighters with saving his life that night – he was rescued while dangling precariously from a window ledge after failing to be able to escape inside the building.
Lara White is starting university at Kings College London in the coming weeks, she said: “I will be staying in student accommodation for the first academic year in central London. This is my first time living away from home, I am naturally quite nervous!
“The toolkit is easy for students to understand and digest and clearly lays out the fire risks I may face when living in London at university halls of residence. Personally, I didn’t know about the increased fire risks of e-bikes, which will be my primary transport when travelling to campus - so knowing this will be very helpful in the long run.”
Station Officer Michael Pole from Euston fire station says students looking for a great experience at university need to do their fire safety homework, he said: “Moving out of home and living in student accommodation, and independently for the first time, is a rite of passage. It’s an exciting time and one that us firefighters would prefer not to intrude on. We’ve been called to incidents involving students that very often can be easily prevented.
“I attended an incident were an e-bike battery catastrophically failed in the corridor of a student accommodation block. It blocked the escape route for all the residents. There was a wheelchair user living in the block. It was a sobering thought that had the fire escalated they would not have been able to get out. Students are a vulnerable group simply because many lack fire safety knowledge.
“We would always recommend storing an e-bike or e-scooter in a shed or if that’s not possible, a room where you can escape and shut the door behind you. Never block a fire escape route! We also recommend never charging batteries when asleep – if things go wrong, quick reactions in an emergency are vital and can save lives.
“Importantly students using e-bikes and e-scooters to get around the capital should think about buying from a reputable high street seller. If looking to purchase something and the bargain found online looks too good to be true – it probably is!”
Other common calls outs for firefighters involve cooking and candles. Fire crews were called to student halls in Greenwich following a fire caused by a toaster catching fire at 2am in the morning back in March this year. Ten students evacuated and half the flat was destroyed by the blaze. Seventeen students had to be rehomed. A cooking fire involving a toaster also destroyed a student flat leaving the occupants without a home to live in.
Firefighters are reminding students of the dangers of leaving candles unattended. Crews attended a High Holborn student accommodation block to put out a fire where 450 people were forced evacuate the building after a candle was accidentally left to burn.
Station Officer Pole recommends a far safer alternative to naked flames: “Thankfully, no one was hurt at this incident, but the room was left uninhabitable and it could have been a lot worse.
“It’s important to never leave candles unattended and keep them away from anything that could catch fire such as curtains, furniture or clothes.
“Most student accommodation buildings prohibit using candles, so our best advice is to swap traditional candles for LED flameless ones as they are much safer, but if you do use real candles, follow our simple safety tips.”
Brigade top fire safety tips for first-time Uni students
Top student tips for e-bike and e-scooter users
- Never block your escape route with anything, including e-bikes and e-scooters. Store them somewhere away from a main through route.
- Always use the correct charger, otherwise the risk of fire increases, and buy an official one from a reputable seller.
- Do not attempt to modify or tamper with your battery. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Converting pedal bikes into e-bikes using DIY kits bought online can be very dangerous. They pose a higher risk of fire. Get a professional or competent person to carry out the conversion and make sure to buy a battery from a reputable seller and that it is not second-hand.
- Check your battery and charger meets UK safety standards. We have particular concern where batteries have been purchased from online marketplaces and when they've been sourced on the internet, which may not meet the correct safety standards.
- For more tips visit the Brigade’s #ChargeSafe website
Cooking safety tips for first time chefs
- Turn off the heat if you need to step away from the hob or grill.
- Skip cooking if you are exhausted, drowsy from medication, or have been drinking alcohol.
- Regularly clean your oven, hob, extractor fan, and grill to stop grease from building up and catching fire.
- Keep loose clothing away from hot burners and keep tea towels or cloths far from the cooker.
- Make sure the hob and oven are fully turned off when you finish.
- Keep kids and pets away from hot stove areas and turn saucepan handles so they do not stick out over the edge.
Candle safety tips
- Make sure you put out any candles, incense and oil burners when you leave the room and especially before bed.
- These items should always be held firmly in heat-resistant holders and placed on a stable surface where they won’t be knocked over.
- Keep them away from materials that might catch fire – that's things like curtains, furniture, clothes and hair.
- Be aware that tea lights get very hot and without proper holders can melt through plastic surfaces like a TV or bath.