Dubai, UAE, 19 April 2018: Insulation within ducting systems, though hidden, can have detrimental effects on firefighters and evacuees during a fire incident, said Terry Johnson, FIFirE, Senior Fire Service Advisor, Dubai Civil Defence, while speaking exclusively to Climate Control Middle East.

Speaking on the issue, Johnson said: “During some fire incidents, we have had problems with some of the insulation within the ducting systems, and we have observed that some of these products emit toxic gases, which can even be cancerous in nature, and it becomes a dangerous situation for firefighters and evacuees. Although we may have breathing apparatuses, residues of these particles remain on our uniforms and safety gear, which we then carry back to the station, making it a health issue for our personnel.”

To combat this issue, Johnson added that the fire department is carrying out extensive studies, in collaboration with some of the major manufacturers, to understand and quantify the toxic gases. Johnson said, “Once we have substantial findings from the studies, we will be able to further update the UAE Fire and Life Safety Code with the information.”