DO FIRE SPRINKLERS REALLY SAVE LIVES AND PROPERTY?

HARRIS COUNTY IS THE 3RD MOST POPULOUS COUNTY IN THE UNITED STATES WITH OVER 4.7 MILLION
PEOPLE. HARRIS COUNTY SEAT IS HOUSTON TEXAS (which is the 4th largest city in the USA).

AT THE BEGINNING OF 2018 THE HARRIS COUNTY FIRE MARSHAL’S OFFICE BEGAN TRACKING THE
EFFECTIVNESS OF FIRE SPRINKLERS, BY DOCUMENTING EACH TIME FIRE INVESTIGATORS RESPONDED TO
A FIRE SCENE IN WHICH A FIRE SPRINKLER SYSTEM ACTIVATED.

BY TRACKING THE FIRE SPRINKLER ACTIVATIONS, HCFMO FOUND FIRE SPRINKLERS: SAVED $
144,266,225.00 IN PROPERTY, NO FATALITIES OR INJURIES WERE REPORTED; AND IN 93% OF SPRINKLER
ACTIVATIONS, ONLY ONE HEAD ACTIVATED.

WHAT DOES THIS TELL US ABOUT FIRE SPRINKLERS?
A) FIRE SPRINKLERS WORK
B) MULTIPLE FIRE SPRINKLERS ACTIVATING AT ONCE IS A MYTH.

FIRE SPRINKLERS WORK, THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, AND THE NUMBERS PROVE IT.

IN 27 FIRE INCIDENTS THAT WERE REPORTED IN 2018, THE LOSSES WERE JUST OVER $11,000,000.00,
WITH PRE-INCIDENT VALUE AT OVER $155,310,275.00.

WITHOUT FIRE SPRINKLERS, THE DAMAGE DONE BY THE FIRE WOULD HAVE BEEN EXPONENTIALLY
HIGHER. THE NUMBERS ALSO SHOW NO LOSSES OF LIFE OR INJURIES IN ANY OF THESE FIRE INCIDENTS.
THOSE TWO STATISTICS SHOW THE EFFECTIVENESS OF FIRE SPRINKLERS, WITHOUT A DOUBT.

13 OF THESE FIRE SPRINKLER ACTIVATIONS OCCURRED IN APARTMENTS, WHERE THERE IS A HIGH
DENSITY OF PEOPLE LIVING. THESE SPRINKLERS CONTROLLED THE FIRE UNTIL THE FIRE DEPARTMENT
ARRIVED, ALLOWING FOR THE SAFE EVACUATION OF THE APARTMENT BUILDING.

WHAT ELSE DID THE FIRE SPRINKLERS DO?

FIRE SPRINKLERS MINIMIZED THE DAMAGE, AND NUMEROUS FAMILIES WERE NOT DISPLACED DUE TO
FIRE. THECOST OF REPAIRS AND RELOCATING ONE OR TWO APARTMENTS IS FAR LESS THAN LOSING AN
ENTIRE BUILDING AND RELOCATING 10 OR 20 FAMILIES.

THERE IS NO PRICE, NO NUMBER, YOU CAN PUT ON HUMAN LIFE. THE SAFETY AND SECURITY FIRE
SPRINKLERS PROVIDE TO RESIDENTS ARE ALSO PRICELESS.

WE ALL KNOW FIRES CAN HAPPEN ANYWHERE, AT ANY TIME. WHEN A FIRE SPRINKLER IS PRESENT, THE
LIKELYHOOD OF MASSIVE PROPERTY DAMAGE AND LOSS OF LIKE IS DRAMATICALLY REDUCED.

HARRIS COUNTY FIRE SPRINKLER SAVE NUMBERS ALSO SHOW SPRINKLERS OPERATE INDIVIDUALLY, NOT
COLLECTIVELY. THIS DISPELS THE MYTH THAT WHEN ONE SPRINKLER ACTIVATES, THEY ALL ACTIVATE.

HOLLYWOOD AND MOVIE MAKERS HAVE PERPETUATED THIS MYTH IN NUMEROUS MOVIES, MORE FOR
DRAMATIC SCENES. TRUTH BE TOLD, FIRE HOSES USED BY FIRE FIGHTERS PUT OUT MORE THAN 10
TIMES THE WATER FLOW PER MINUTE THAN A FIRE SPRINKLER.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

FIRE SPRINKLERS PRODUCE LESS OVERALL WATER DAMAGE THAN FIRE HOSES.

FROM THE TIME A FIRE IS DISCOVERED, IT CAN TAKE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT BETWEEN 4-8 MINUTES TO
ARRIVE. IN THIS AMOUNT OF TIME, TREMENDOUS SMOKE AND FIRE DAMAGE CAN BE DONE.

FIRE SPRINKLERS REACT, RESPONDING ONLY WHEN TEMPERATURES NEAR THE SPRINKLER REACHES
135-165 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. THE WATER RELEASED FROM THE SPRINKLER IS DESIGNED TO LAST FOR
AT LEAST 10 MINUTES, WHICH IS ENOUGH TIME TO EXTINGUISH THE FIRE OR KEEP IT UNDER CONTROL
UNTIL THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ARRIVES.

FIRE SPRINKLERS ARE A PROVEN WAY TO PROTECT LIVES AND PROPERTY, AS DEMONSTRATED BY THE $
144,266,225.00 IN PROPERTY THAT WAS SAVED IN UNICORPORATED HARRIS COUNTY DURING 2018.

FROM ARTICLE PUBLISHED BY THE NATIONAL FIRE SPRINKLER ASSOCIATION 2/13/2020

You don’t have to ask us, but I encourage you to ASK!

K. Proud
President
PFPS LTD

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