Fires caused by damaged cables are underestimated

Today is World Fire Safety Day. Its aim is to raise awareness of the dangers of fire and preventive measures.

Fire hazard due to fault arcs

Many Swiss are already sensitized to the topic of fire protection and rely on smoke detectors, regularly check cable connections or avoid open fires such as candles. However, there are other fire hazards that few Swiss are aware of - for example, from so-called arc faults. These occur when cables or lines are damaged - although the actual fire may not start until much later. Damage can result, for example, from drilling into the cables or lines.

More than half of the Swiss (51.2 percent) are not aware of the danger of arc faults. Only 20 percent are aware of the dangers and know how to counteract them. This is the result of a survey conducted by the energy management company Eaton shown.

The survey also shows that the Swiss underestimate the long-term danger of arc faults, with more than half (51.8 percent) thinking that everything would be fine as long as there was no smoke development immediately after drilling. Only about 29 percent are even aware that a fire can occur when drilling into cables or pipes. The majority tend to have smaller problems in mind, such as fusing.

The fact that the majority of Swiss people are not aware of the fire hazards when drilling holes in their apartments or houses probably also leads to careless behavior: more than 13 percent say they simply drill a hole without first finding out where the pipes are located - with tenants in apartments more often than average starting without a precise plan (19.2 percent). Tenants in houses (2.3 percent), on the other hand, are more cautious. 24.8 percent of respondents say they are quite sure where the lines run, 31.6 percent know approximately. Tenants of houses (34.1 percent) are the most informed about the course of the lines.

Minor differences in the DACH region

In the DACH region, there are only slight differences in terms of underestimation of fire hazards caused by arc faults. In Austria and Germany, however, more people are aware of the dangers (60 and 62.4 percent, respectively). The Swiss are more careless when it comes to drilling holes - in Austria, 7.8 percent simply drill away without checking the position of the cables, in Germany only four percent.

Conclusion

Fires still cost the lives of 4,000 people in Europe every year, 70,000 more end up in hospital, and the material damage amounts to 126 billion euros. One quarter of all fires are caused by electricity. According to BFB Beratungsstelle für Brandverhütung, 20,000 fires cause CHF 600 million in damage every year in Switzerland alone.

"Cable fires currently receive too little attention, even though they are a hazard for tenants and homeowners alike. This is where electricians in particular need to raise awareness among their customers," comments Kimberly Iseli of Eaton. "Mandatory protective measures such as RCDs do not offer any protection here. AFDD (Arc Fault Detection Device) circuit breakers, which eliminate the risk of dangerous arc faults, provide a remedy. As an integrated solution with line circuit breakers and residual current circuit breakers, they meet the highest safety requirements and are particularly recommended for bedrooms, recreation rooms and rooms with an increased fire risk."
Source: Eaton