Dudley Residential Care Home loft Sprinkler Save

West Midlands Fire Service, (WMFRS) Mark Serdetschniy said:

“If it was not for the sprinkler system suppressing the fire before the arrival of the fire service, the outcome of this fire could have been so different, the sprinkler system absolutely saved lives and the building.”

The Incident

At 03:47, WMFRS responded to a fire on the first floor of a residential care home. The incident originated with the bathroom ceiling extractor fan, resulting in limited fire spread within the roof void above. Activation of a single sprinkler head in the room of origin effectively reducing the products of combustion, thereby restricting fire growth and allowing WMFS sufficient time to extinguish the fire using firefighting media. No injuries were reported.

Residential care premises

Present a series of unique challenges with respect to fire safety. The needs of the occupants and the resources required to undertake an evacuation in these types of premises require careful consideration both in the design and ongoing operation of such buildings, to ensure that an appropriate level of fire safety is provided.

The diminished senses that result from the ageing process may ultimately result in the occupants having a slower reaction time to raise an alarm, and due to the residents’ reduced physical capabilities, a slower response time to an alarm, which may result in an increased evacuation time.

All the above- mentioned factors combine to increase the risk of injury or fatality in a fire, especially where assistance from staff may be restricted at night where residents require assistance, it is likely that the evacuation process will take longer, and sprinklers provide significant benefits to address this risk.

Benefits of reporting sprinkler activations

Working with the National Fire Chiefs Council, the National Fire Sprinkler Network, and our Automatic Water Suppression System (AWSS) colleagues we gather evidence of these incidents as a valuable tool highlighting the benefits of AWSS providing vital evidence of the reliability and effectiveness of AWSS adding further weight to the report conducted by ¹Optimal economics into the performance, reliability and effectiveness of AWSS.

Providing further evidence supporting our long-standing campaign to increase the presence of sprinklers within the built environment by highlighting real life tangible examples of where AWSS were present and had an impact. As such, each of these stories provide powerful evidence of the ability of AWSS protecting our communities from fire.

The outcome of which will influence policymakers to implement change, the British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association, welcomed the government announcement that as of March 2025, Sprinklers are now required in all new care homes regardless of height within England, which we have been constantly calling for within the fire sector, however we agree with the ²NFCC that it remains a concern there is no requirement to cover homes undergoing extension or major and significant refurbishment.

Conclusion

This incident reinforces.

• The sprinkler system maintained the care homes continuity of providing care to their residents with minimal disruption, valuable community asset saved.
• The installation of sprinklers reduces the likelihood of a fire spreading beyond the room of origin, providing valuable time for evacuation and firefighting reducing the need for decanting the vulnerable residents
• AWSS play a key role in fire safety by helping minimise fire risks to people, property, firefighters, and the environment as part of a comprehensive safety plan.

Effective advocacy and policy lobbying require the collection of robust supporting evidence. If you have knowledge of a sprinkler incident that may contribute to this initiative, please provide the pertinent details using the sprinkler activation reporting form available at www.sprinklersaves.co.uk.

Credit to WMFS for submitting this incident report to Sprinkler Saves UK, it makes a difference.

References, Sources

• ¹Optimal Economics Report, commissioned by the National Fire Chiefs Council
• ²NFCC AWSS policy statement
• Sprinkler Saves Review 2024/2025
• Sprinkler Saves Autum update 2025
• WMFRS Sprinklers
• NFSN Winter newsletter