December 07, 2011
By: Jana Bell
A new report says while fires in high-rise buildings continue to cause significant financial losses every year, the risk of severe damage has been sliding.
There were an average of more than 15,000 high-rise fires linked to roughly $235 million in property damage each year from 2005 to 2009, according to the National Fire Protection Association. In addition, those incidents accounted for roughly 3 percent of all structural fires and resulted in an average of 53 deaths and 546 injuries over those five years.
The organization says that roughly half of high-rise fires started in apartments, hotels, offices or medical facilities, leading to numerous renters and business insurance claims. Fires in these main property types accounted for $99 million in damage annually.
The group added that despite the high damage totals, the risk of fire damages and injuries is actually significantly lower in high-rises when compared to shorter buildings. This is likely due to a greater adoption of sprinkler systems and other fire protection measures.
Nationwide, fires cause a significant amount of damage each year. The NFPA says that the total price of fires in 2008 - including damage, fire department expenditures and other costs - was roughly $362 billion.
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