Fire safety in companies - what are the obligations?

We will tell you what the obligations of the administrators and owners of the companies in charge of this issue are.

The obligations of legal entities and natural persons engaged in business in fire protection are set out in Act No. 133/1985 Coll.

Provide sufficient fire safety equipment

An important duty of legal persons and natural persons engaged in fire protection is to ensure sufficient quantity and appropriate type of firefighting equipment, material means of fire protection and fire safety equipment.

What is a fire safety device

As part of fire protection, the law requires the provision of fire safety equipment, the functionality of which depends on, for example, fire alarms, the escape of persons from a burning building, or equipment that prevents the spread of fire.

Accordingly, we can classify the types of fire safety equipment into seven categories:

1. 1. Fire alarm equipment
   2. This includes electrical fire alarm systems, remote transmission equipment, flammable gas and vapour detection equipment, manual fire alarm devices, etc.

(2) Fire or explosion suppression equipment This includes fixed or semi-fixed fire extinguishing systems, automatic explosion protection equipment and sprinkler systems.
 

(3) Fire smoke control devices These are smoke and heat extraction devices, pressure relief ventilation devices, smoke dampers with control mechanism, smoke-tight doors and natural smoke ventilation devices.
 

(4) Fire escape equipment This includes fire or evacuation lifts, emergency lighting, emergency communication equipment, functional door equipment and warning devices.

(5) Fire water supply equipment This includes external fire water mains including overhead and underground hydrants, filling points and fire discharge stands, internal fire water mains including wall mounted hydrants, hose and hydrant systems and unwatered fire mains. 
 

(6) Fire containment equipment Fire containment equipment includes fire dampers, fire doors and door closures, including their functional equipment, systems and features to increase the fire resistance of building structures or to reduce the combustibility of building materials, water curtains and fire partitions and seals. 
 

(7) Alternate sources and means These devices are intended to ensure the operability of fire safety equipment, sources or supplies of extinguishing agents for equipment that suppresses fire or explosion, and fire water supply equipment and sources intended for fire suppression.
 

Create conditions for firefighting and rescue work

Another duty is to create conditions for firefighting and rescue work. This means, in particular, maintaining clear access roads and entry areas for firefighting equipment, escape routes and free access to emergency exits and to electricity distribution facilities and to water, gas, heating and product pipelines. There shall also be free access to fire protection equipment and to the manual operation of fire safety equipment.
 

It is a common mistake to place objects or even furniture in the path that is used by rescuers in the event of a fire. An inspection can impose a very high fine for this mischief.

Observe the technical conditions and instructions

In the context of fire safety, it is also necessary to comply with technical conditions and instructions relating to the fire safety of products and activities. For example, make sure that fire detectors are positioned according to the enclosed instructions so that they work properly.

Mark the workplace according to the requirements

An important part of fire safety is the marking of the workplace and other places with appropriate safety signs, orders, prohibitions and instructions. Do not forget to mark places where fire protection equipment and fire safety devices are located.

Ensure regular checks by a specialist

It is also a duty to regularly check the status and compliance with fire protection regulations. These should only be carried out by a competent person (section 11(1)), a fire protection engineer (section 11(2)) or a fire prevention officer (section 11(6)). If a competent person finds any defects or faults, these must be rectified immediately.

When it is necessary to provide fire inspections:

The obligation to provide fire inspections is stipulated in Section 13 of Decree 246/2001 Coll.

• In buildings and facilities where activities with high fire hazards are carried out, preventive fire inspections must be carried out at least once every 3 months
• In buildings and facilities where activities with increased fire hazards are carried out, preventive fire inspections must be carried out at least once every 6 months
• In buildings and facilities where activities without increased fire hazards are carried out, preventive fire inspections must be carried out at least once a year.
   

Other important duties

According to the Fire Safety Act, companies are also obliged to:

• To enable the state fire supervision authority to carry out an inspection of the fulfilment of fire protection obligations and to provide the required documents and documentation. This also includes information relating to the provision of fire protection in accordance with the law and to comply with the measures imposed within the specified time limits.
•  To provide the state fire supervision authority with products or samples necessary to carry out a fire technical examination to determine the cause of the fire.
•  To report without delay to the region's fire rescue service operations centre any fire that has occurred in the activities carried out by the company or in the premises owned or used by the company.