Increased Fire protection, prevention & safety

On May 9th of 2018 my life was severely impacted after being in the center of a fire accident involving gas, and a beautifully lit table center piece. The owner of the appliance, thought that to keep it lit, gas was required to be poured on top of it. Unfortunately, not everyone knows not to pour gas on fire, and maybe if we have a little bit of a stronger grip of these powerful appliances, rather than banning them we can increase some safety measures so no one ever has to make the same mistake my friend made that night, and no one has to suffer the consequences from it... The Office of the Fire Marshal is responsible for delivering several programs relating to fire and life safety as identified in the Fire Protection and Prevention Act. At this stage, there are no rules restricting or prohibiting the use of appliances such as the gas fire table that was involved with my injury. Similarly to a BBQ, users are encouraged to read the manufacturer’s instructions to ensure they can use the appliance safely. This is where my discussions with the manufacturer may be instrumental in advising them that even with the user guide and instruction manual severe injury can occur.

I have always enjoyed sitting by a fire or a fancy bbq to set the summer mood, even the gas run fireplace in my home, or a bonfire out by the water . Banning these appliances would be unfair, and unnecessary. However, if we’re going to own and use these items we should be thoroughly instructed and taught how to use them safely. Changes I would like to see would be any of the following:
1. A permit or license confirming that the user/owner of the appliance is fully licensed and trained on how to use the product of working with gas or explosives. It could be as simple as being a part of a “warranty” upon purchasing the item that consumers must buy into. .
2. A fire blanket should be mandatory to be within 10 feet of any gas ignited appliance.
3. There should be more protection to cover burn survivors and medical expenses that come along with the injury and there should be more research and work put into our burn units around Ontario.
If either or were simply in place and regulated, and we didn’t restrict anyone from a simple freedom or place bans on what people use in their homes, we can just encourage better safety. Maybe I would still have my body and maybe I would be in way less pain. Maybe when I panicked and immidiately thought to look for a fire blanket, there would be one there and the events of May 9th would have panned out completely differently.

When I share these points with the OFM, we may facilitate changes in the Fire Protection and Prevention Act which would impact not only Ottawa but all fire services in Ontario.