It should come as no surprise that children with disabilities are particularly at risk when it comes to fires on buses.
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), “During the five-year period of 1999-2003, U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated average of 2,210 bus or school bus fires per year. These fires caused an estimated annual average of three civilian deaths, 30 civilian injuries and $24.2 million in direct property damage per year.” The majority of these fires were caused by mechanical and electrical failures and friction at the bus’s rear axle.
Despite an industry-wide understanding and acknowledgement of the seriousness of fires, there remains no national standard or requirement mandating the installation of fire suppression systems on school buses in the U.S. Fortunately, many bus operators and school systems are implementing fire safety measures on their own, consisting of a three-point program of increased emphasis on maintenance, driver education and the adoption of dedicated fire suppression system technology.
Better pro-active maintenance under the hood helps ensure that flammable fluids such as gas, oil and power steering fluids do not come into contact with hot running engine or exhaust parts that could cause a fire. Likewise, fire-prone electrical components are also checked to be sure there are no frayed wires or poorly grounded components. Areas around the rear axle on a bus can also be the source of a fire, including overheated brakes and exhaust which can cause a fire to travel up through the wheel wells to passenger seating or migrate through the chassis to the engine compartment.
Increased education and training on the part of bus drivers and attendants is also playing a part in reducing the impact of a bus fire. Drivers are being trained to evacuate their child passengers quickly to safety rather than fight a fire, which is often futile given the speed in which a bus fire can spread. Drivers are also being taught how to recognize and respond to each individual child’s physical or mental disability in order to maximize their response in the event of fire emergency. The primary focus of a driver in these situations should be the safety removal of the occupants from the vehicle. Typically, by the time removal in achieved the fire has typically grown to exceed the capabilities of a handheld fire extinguisher.
School bus operators and school systems are increasingly installing dedicated fire suppression systems, rather than relying upon on-board handheld fire extinguishers, to protect against bus fires. Automatic fire detection and suppression solutions are available that are specifically designed to deal with the mechanical and electrical fire risk areas on school buses. Installing one of these relatively low-cost systems can not only suppress a fire, saving the bus, but can also buy many precious seconds that can help save the lives of physically and mentally challenged children who might otherwise might not be able to evacuate a bus in the event of a fire.
When considering fire suppression look for a system that has a high rating for the SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden’s P-Mark. The P-Mark indicates that the fire suppression system has been developed to ensure maximum prevention of loss of life, property and revenue. ABC dry chemical powder is the preferred option for effectiveness, as demonstrated by the P-Mark and verified by independent experts worldwide. P-Marked systems have been independently evaluated on their operation under the harshest conditions in multiple worst-case fire scenario incidents for common bus fires.
Scott Starr is te director of marketing for Firetrace Internationa, a Halma company with more than 20 years of experience in the protection of small hazard space, including engine compartments. He can be reached at sstarr@firetrace.com.
