Causes and Extent of...

Public buildings are very crucial in the social and economy of every country and have been subjected to various hazards including fire incidents leading to various degree of destructions. The study examines the causes and extent of fire-fighting equipment availability among public buildings in the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria. Four hundred (400) questionnaires were administered among randomly selected respondents (public building occupants); however, 376 were returned and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as frequency count, percentage and one-sample t-test. The outcome of the study showed that electrical fault (22.9%), careless in the use of fire (20.2%), negligence (17.5%) and overload of electrical appliance (17.3%) are perceived as major causes of fire incidents. Respondents are not satisfied (76.9%) with the extent of fire-fighting equipment available in their building where fire hydrant (72.1%), flame detector (94.7%), smoke detector (67.0%) and fire alarm system (69.1%) are not available. Most buildings are equipped with fire safety signs (76.9%), fire extinguisher (89.1%) and sand (72.3%) and they are functioning. In conclusion, fire incidents among public building is caused by electrical fault, careless in the use of fire and negligence and the impact is exacerbated due to insufficient fire-fighting equipment. Therefore, public building should be well fitted with various firefighting equipment, maintained, tested and upgraded frequently to avoid failure when needed.