The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has released the
attached snapshot on fires occurring in hospitals during 2012-14.
According to the agency, an estimated 5,700 medical facility
fires were reported each year during that period; nearly a fifth
of those fires (1,100) were in hospitals. Estimations place
losses at fewer than five deaths, 25 injuries and $5 million in
property loss. The majority of hospital fires were confined to
cooking pots (60 percent). Fires in trash bins, incinerators or
compactors composed 10 percent of hospital fires, while 3 percent
were fuel burner or chimney fires. Confined fires are smaller
fires that rarely result in death, serious injury or large
content losses. Non-confined fires, which are generally larger
structure fires, made up 27 percent of hospital fires. Additional
statistics are available at www.usfa.fema.gov/data/statistics/.
