Citation

Doyle A, Lyons S, Lynn E. Fire Safety J. 2019; 110: e102892.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.firesaf.2019.102892

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

For the first time in the Republic of Ireland, analysis using coronial data describes all fire-related fatalities occurring during the years 2014-2016. Of the 106 fatalities, the majority of those who died were male (69, 65%) and 55 (52%) were 65 years or older. Most fires took place in private dwellings (97, 92%), in rural locations (58, 55%) and the majority were alone at the time of the fire (73, 69%). Fatal fires occurred more frequently during the night and where known (n = 48), the leading cause of fatal fires was due to smoking materials (12, 25%). Mobility was an issue for 16 people (15%) and 32 people (30%) were known to be smokers. Farmers and agricultural workers were over-represented in the data. Alcohol features prominently with alcohol present on toxicology for 54 (51%) fatalities. A Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of at least 160 mg of alcohol per 100 mL of blood (mg/100 ml) was present in 35 fatalities (33% of all fatalities) and of those, the majority were male and in the 35-59 years age group. The high BAC levels in a significant number of fire fatalities, draws attention to the negative impact of alcohol on fire-related mortality.

Language: en

Keywords

Coroners; Fatal; Fires; Ireland; Toxicology