Smart stove guards have been fitted in Brighton student kitchens in a bid to prevent fires.
East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service and the University of Brighton have teamed up to install the sensors, which monitor the use of the hob and identify when there is a steep rise in temperature, auomatically turning off electricity or gas supplies.
Andy Reynolds, Director of Protection and Prevention from East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said: “This technology is relatively new in the UK and we are very pleased the University of Brighton is working in partnership with us to help cut the number of fires and indeed false alarms on campus.
“People being distracted while cooking is a big problem. These devices mean that the chances of having a serious fire are reduced, without having to rely on someone being in the room to do something.
“They can also be particularly useful in homes where using the hob becomes high risk due to a person’s advanced age, Alzheimer’s or dementia, disability, or learning difficulties.
“We are now planning to work with other organisations, such as assisted living homes, to help them identify where this life saving technology can make a real difference.”
In 2014, 45 devices were fitted to newly refurbished student kitchens. After this successful trial period, an additional 109 units have now been installed in the remainder of the University of Brighton halls of residence.
The University of Brighton fire safety manager, Phil Thompson, said: “We have long had a strategy of charging students for deliberate acts of causing fire alarm activations of interfering with equipment.
“More recently we have been fitting warning devices to kitchen doors to prevent them from being held open, and now this is the third part of our strategy – the fitting of these devices to every cooker to prevent cooker top fires.”
If you are interested in finding out more information, please contact enquiries@esfrs.org or call 0303 999 1000 and ask for community safety.
