Fires in gym mats in schools

[William 29]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

[nearlythere]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

Are you maybe referring to the fire in Maysfield Leisure Centre, Belfast in 1984 when 6 people lost their lives from a fire in a mat store?

[Rex]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

[Rex]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

William, see BB 100 Design and Managing Againest the Risk of fire in Schools, paragraph 6.4 indicates that gym mats should be
stored in locked metal cupboards. When I was a lad 200 years ago we recommended a store with half hour fire resisting constuction including a locked fire resisting door with a permanent vent and automatic smoke detector, hope this is of some help to you.
 

[Dragonmaster]

It came from  Fire Service Circular 1/1988 - Fire Hazards associated with the use of cellular foam in Sports and Recreational Facilities

[William 29]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

Are you maybe referring to the fire in Maysfield Leisure Centre, Belfast in 1984 when 6 people lost their lives from a fire in a mat store?

Yes thats the one, I well aware of BB100 etc my point was that I don't know the circumstances of the Maysfield fire but am assuming that since that fire EVERY gym mat store in the world has to have FRA, AFD, vents to the room etc. when in reality under a FRA this doesn't alaway work and on a risk based approach these items may not be needed.  Most of the schools we come across would not comply with these "requirements".  I can think of a 3 storey Victorian school where they are lugging the gym mats down 3 flights of stairs after every use to put them in an external store they have provided because there was no suitable room or place to store them in the school.

[nearlythere]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

Are you maybe referring to the fire in Maysfield Leisure Centre, Belfast in 1984 when 6 people lost their lives from a fire in a mat store?

Yes thats the one, I well aware of BB100 etc my point was that I don't know the circumstances of the Maysfield fire but am assuming that since that fire EVERY gym mat store in the world has to have FRA, AFD, vents to the room etc. when in reality under a FRA this doesn't alaway work and on a risk based approach these items may not be needed.  Most of the schools we come across would not comply with these "requirements".  I can think of a 3 storey Victorian school where they are lugging the gym mats down 3 flights of stairs after every use to put them in an external store they have provided because there was no suitable room or place to store them in the school.

It was only a recommendation from Boyce which was then made a requirement, under certification, for leisure centers owned, managed and maintained by a Council. The Councils all went for extraction.

[William 29]

Does anyone know where the "requirement" to have gym mats in schools enclosed in FR stores with strips and seals on the doors orginally came from.  I seem to remember a fire in a school years back invloving gym mats when everyone made a big fuss.  I know they can be volatile when invloved in fire but I am coming across fire officers insisting that mats are located in external or internal stores.

Are you maybe referring to the fire in Maysfield Leisure Centre, Belfast in 1984 when 6 people lost their lives from a fire in a mat store?

Does anyone have a copy of the Maysfield Leisure Centre report, I've tried the Web, no joy?  I'd just be interested to the background of the fire

[John Webb]

The fire was on the 14th January 1984. The Fire Research Station was involved in looking at the fire but I don't have a copy of any reports they produced as I wasn't directly involved in the work.

As I recall the mats were stored but set alight by an arsonist - due to various failings in storage and containment escape routes were compromised leading to the deaths of six people. There might be something tucked away on www.bre.co.uk but as it was 25 years ago I don't hold out much hope.

[William 29]

Thanks John, do you know of any other signifcant fires invloving gym mats in schools or other buildings.

[nearlythere]

The fire was on the 14th January 1984. The Fire Research Station was involved in looking at the fire but I don't have a copy of any reports they produced as I wasn't directly involved in the work.

As I recall the mats were stored but set alight by an arsonist - due to various failings in storage and containment escape routes were compromised leading to the deaths of six people. There might be something tucked away on www.bre.co.uk but as it was 25 years ago I don't hold out much hope.

Think I remember that someone was having a smoke in the store and threw the ciggy in behind the mats. Deaths were caused by the considerable quantity of smoke generated which spread throughout the building. There was also a problem with people finding the escape routes.
One search team entered a squash court and had difficulty getting out as there were no handles. There was also a problem with people getting caught up in nets in the hall.

[rn976]

William
fire along similar lines in Kent (I think Chatham dockyard) I belive in 70s in mattress store this one killed two firefighters

 

[Gasmeter]

I was at the Maysfield fire as a fresh faced young BA man; we were told at the time that 'youths' had entered the leisure centre through an emergency exit door close to the mat store and deliberately ignited them, the store was fitted with a steel roller shutter but the shutter enclosure and partition above it were not fire resisting, just plywood.  I do have a hard copy of the Boyce Report somewhere.......... 

[rn976]

William

just found this whilst doing some research bit late on but may help
"A Quantified fire risk assessment model for indoor play areas"
Chiltern Fire 01494 569800
www.chilternfire.co.uk
 this did involve work with fires in play mats may be of help with gym mats as well.

regards

rn976

[rn976]

William
just found these new docs not the stores but the mats themselves

BS EN 12503-1: 2001
Title    Sports mats - Part 1: Gymnastic mats, safety requirements.
 Also the following
Sports mats - Part 2: Pole vault and high jump mats, safety requirements.

Sports mats - Part 3: Judo mats, safety requirements.
Guidance in BS re
Flame retardancy
Sports matting for use in the United Kingdom shall satisfy certain minimum levels of flame retardancy. These levels and the required test methodology are detailed in BS 1892: 2.10 : 1999 (revised).

regards

rn976