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3. Commentary
3.1 Total number of fires (Tables 1 & 1a)
There were 46,971 total fires (primary, secondary and chimney fires - see note 5.6 for definitions) in Scotland in 2005, a very slight increase from the 46,933 fires recorded in 2004. Around one third (32 per cent) were primary fires, of which 68 per cent were in buildings, 26 per cent were road vehicle fires and the remainder other outdoor fires. Secondary fires accounted for 65 per cent of all fires, compared with 63 per cent in 2004.
Compared to 2004, primary fires fell by 4 per cent in 2005 to stand at 15,126. Secondary fires rose by 3 per cent to stand at 30,389. Chimney fires fell for the fourth consecutive year from 1,653 in 2004 to 1,456 in 2005, and now represent 3 per cent of all fires.
Between 1996 and 2005 the total number of Scottish fires decreased by 15,285 (25 per cent). Primary fires fell by 4,455 (23 per cent) over the decade, while secondary fires fell by 6,229 (17 per cent) and chimney fires fell by 4,601 (76 per cent).
3.2 Building fires (Tables 2 & 2a)
In 2005, there were a total of 10,244 building fires in Scotland, down 4 per cent from 10,656 in 2004. Dwelling fires accounted for 69 per cent (7,054 fires) of Scotland's total buildings fires in 2005. This is a higher percentage than in the other UK countries. In comparison to 1996, the number of both building fires and dwellings fires are down by 26 per cent.
3.3 Outdoor fires (Tables 3 & 3a)
Over the last 10 years, outdoor fires (primary and secondary) have decreased by 17 per cent from 42,424 in 1996 to 35,271 in 2005. Of the 35,271 outdoor fires in Scotland in 2005, 4,882 (14 per cent) were primary fires and 30,389 (86 per cent) were secondary fires.
The most common types of outdoor fire in Scotland in 2005 were refuse fires (including fires in refuse containers), accounting for 59 per cent of all outdoor fires, and grassland fires, accounting for 18 per cent of all outdoor fires. The majority of primary outdoor fires were road vehicle fires, accounting for 81 per cent of all primary outdoor fires.
3.4 Casualties from fires (Tables 4, 4a, 5, 5a)
In Scotland, there were a total of 65 fatal casualties in 2005 - a fall of 34 (34 per cent) on the figures from 2004. Fifty eight (89 per cent) of fatal casualties in 2005 occurred in dwellings fires and 4 (6 per cent) were in road vehicles.
The biggest cause of fatal casualties was being overcome by gas or smoke (35 fatal casualties, or 54 per cent). A further 20 (31 per cent) fatal casualties were caused jointly by burns and overcome by gas or smoke, and 5 (8 per cent) fatal casualties were caused by burns alone.
The number of non-fatal casualties in Scotland in 2005 was 1,667, a decrease of 10 per cent compared with 2004. Of these non-fatal casualties, 1,461 occurred in dwellings fires (88 per cent), 118 (7 per cent) occurred in other buildings and 53 (3 per cent) occurred in road vehicles.
3.5 Casualty rates from fires (Tables 5a & 6)
There were 13 fatal casualties per million population in Scotland in 2005. The age group with the highest rate of fatal casualties was 80 years and over, with 38 per million population. The second highest rate was for the 60-64 years age group with 26 per million population, followed by the 65-79 years age group with 19 per million population. There were no fatal casualties of children under 1 year of age, children between 5-16 years of age or adults aged 25-29 years.
In comparison to the other UK countries, Scotland reported both the highest number of fatal casualties per million population and the highest rate of non-fatal casualties per million population (323 non-fatal casualties per million population). The equivalent figures for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, were 8, 10 and 5 and 217, 250 and 224 respectively. Within Scotland the number of fatal casualties per million population was highest in Dumfries and Galloway (20 fatal casualties per million population), followed by Tayside (18 fatal casualties per million population).
3.6 Deliberate fires (Tables 7 & 7a)
There were 5,847 deliberate primary fires, representing 39 per cent of total primary fires in 2005 - the third successive year showing a decrease in the percentage of primary fires. In 2005, there were 11 fatal casualties from deliberate fires, accounting for 17 per cent of total fatal casualties. There were 319 deliberate fire non-fatal casualties in 2005, accounting for 19 per cent of Scotland's total non-fatal casualties.
3.7 Accidental fires (Tables 7 & 7a)
There were 9,279 accidental primary fires in 2005 accounting for 61 per cent of total primary fires. There were 54 accidental fire fatal casualties in 2005, accounting for 83 per cent of total fatal casualties. There were 1,348 accidental fire non-fatal casualties in 2005, accounting for 81 per cent of total non-fatal casualties. The pattern of accidental fires causing significantly more fatal and non-fatal casualties than deliberate fires has held throughout the decade.
3.8 Fatal casualties in dwelling fires (Tables 8, 8a & 11)
The 58 fatal casualties in dwelling fires in 2005 represented a rate of 8 fatal casualties per 1,000 dwelling fires. This rate is somewhat higher than the rate in England and Northern Ireland but lower than that in Wales. The fatal casualty rate per thousand fires in Scotland is more similar to the rest of the UK than the fatal casualty rate per million population, suggesting that the reason for Scotland's higher overall fatal casualty rate per million population in 2005 reflected a higher risk of dwelling fires rather than a higher likelihood of a fatal casualty occurring in such fires.
For fatal casualties in accidental dwellings fires, the main source of ignition, where specified, was smokers' materials and matches (56 per cent) followed by cooking appliances (18 per cent), mainly involving misuse of equipment.
3.9 Smoke alarms (Tables 9 & 9a)
In 2005, 2,750 dwellings fires (39 per cent of the total number of dwellings fires) occurred in dwellings without a smoke detector. This compares to 2,793 fires (40 per cent) of total Scottish dwellings fires which occurred in dwellings where a smoke detector was present, operated and raised the alarm. In the years since 1996, the majority of fatal casualties have occurred in dwellings fires where either a smoke alarm was absent or the smoke detector was present but failed to operate.
3.10 Causes of fires (Tables 10 & 10a)
The number of deliberate fires in dwellings was 1,369, or 19 per cent, of the 7,054 total Scottish dwellings fires in 2005 - slightly down compared to 21 per cent in 2004. Of the remaining 81 per cent of total Scottish dwellings fires, most were accounted for by misuse of equipment or appliances (2,548 fires - 36 per cent), chip or fat pan fires (854 - 12 per cent) and faulty appliance and leads (677 - 10 per cent).
3.11 False fire alarms (Tables 13 & 13a)
In 2005, total false fire alarms in Scotland constituted 53,506 incidents, representing 53 per cent of total call outs to fires (primary, secondary and chimney) and false fire alarms. This is down slightly from 54 per cent in 2004.
In 2005, 33,041 false fire alarms or 62 per cent of total false fire alarms were caused due to apparatus failure. The 5,762 malicious false fire alarms accounted for 11 per cent of total false fire alarms. Malicious false alarms have fallen since the peak of 22,500 incidents recorded in 1992, when they accounted for 43 per cent of total false fire alarms.
3.12 Call out times to fires ( Table 14)
In Scotland in 2005 the majority of call outs to all fires generally occurred from early afternoon through to late evening (approximately 5pm to midnight). Scotland's peak total fires call out occurred at around 7pm.
Dwelling fires in Scotland show a peak period between 4pm and 9pm, a similar pattern to the other countries in the UK. Callouts to outdoor fires generally occur throughout the evening and night, between 7pm and 2am.
3.13 Casualties from fires in dwellings, by time of call ( Table 14a)
In 2005, fires in dwellings were most likely to cause fatal and non-fatal casualties in the early morning (approximately 2am to 7am).
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