Fire safety breaches cost Poundland £20,000

Poundland Ltd, a national chain store has been found guilty of severe fire safety breaches at its Commercial Road outlet in Portsmouth.

On inspection the breaches were deemed to be so severe that the store was evacuated until corrective action had taken place. The inspection took place in November 2008. The fire exits were not kept clear and it was apparent that the temporary store manager had not had adequate training.

As a result of four breaches of the Regulatory Reform Order Poundland were ordered to pay £20,000

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Training hots up for Scottish firefighters

A new training unit, allowing training to take place in conditions hotter than 750 degrees Celsius, has been opened by the Highland and Islands Fire Board.

The new facility will enable firefighters to practice tackling a room fire and using techniques that will dampen the flames without causing scalding steam. Firefighters will also practice tackling back-draught and flash-overs that can occur when the door of a room containing a fire is opened.

It is hoped that this new training unit, based at Sumburgh Airport, on the Shetland Isles, will combat the rise in firefighter deaths due to situations involving room fires.

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