10 Oct 2012
Patients had to be moved from a ward after a fire started at a hospital in Cornwall.
The small fire happened in an electrical room on the ground-floor of the Royal Cornwall Hospital shortly after 8am on October 7.
On arrival firefighters called for back-up and a full evacuation plan was drawn up, which fortunately did not need to be enacted as only patients in the ward nearest the fire needed to be moved to another part of the Truro hospital.
Fire crews used a specialist saw to gain access to the electrical unit to confirm whether the blaze had been fully extinguished.
Royal Cornwall Hospital’s chief executive Lezli Boswel confirmed patients were moved from the Phoenix Ward but they were not harmed in the incident.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 states that all commercial properties in England and Wales must undertake a “suitable and sufficient” fire risk assessment.
In cases where an insufficient assessment is deemed to have been carried out, the ‘Responsible Person’ can face the prospect of an unlimited fine or a prison sentence of up to two years.
Copyright Press Association 2012