Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service is supporting the National Fire Chiefs Council’s (NFCC) National Sprinkler Week campaign.

The campaign will run from Monday 18th to 24th May and will raise awareness of the benefits of sprinkler systems in keeping people and buildings safer from fire as we encourage people to #ThinkSprinkler.

Fire sprinklers are widely recognised as the single most effective method for fighting the spread of fires in their early stages.

Research by the NFCC and the National Fire Sprinkler Network (NFSN) found that sprinkler systems operate on 94% of occasions so are very reliable and when they do operate they extinguish or contain the fire on 99% of occasions. The result is sprinklers reduce injuries by at least 80%, reduce property damage by 90% and substantially reduce damage to the environment from fire.

This also means that sprinkler systems help to protect the lives of firefighters and that is why they are fully supported by fire services. Despite this there is some disparity in building regulations and sprinkler systems across the UK. Sprinkler laws in Wales and Scotland are stricter meaning their communities have more fire protection than those of England and Northern Ireland.

NFCC lead for Sprinklers and Chief Fire Officer of Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, Gavin Tomlinson, said: “The evidence speaks for itself, our research proves that sprinklers are very effective and provide strong fire safety protections as part of a fire safety package. Wales and Scotland recognise this and have implemented measures to make their communities safer from fire; we want to see these same changes in England and Northern Ireland as matter of urgency. Fire does not discriminate and is just as dangerous in England and Northern Ireland as it is in the rest of the UK.”

Let's throw some water on myths about sprinklers...

#1 Sprinklers might go off accidentally and cause loads of damage - The odds of a sprinkler malfunction are 16 million to one. They don't false alarm as they need intense heat to activate.

#2 Sprinklers cause more damage than actual fire - No, they contain or extinguish fires when they are very small and so use a lot less water than a firefighters' hose.

#3 Sprinklers can flood a building if they are activated - No, only on TV! Each sprinkler head must be activated by heat so only the head affected by fire will activate. This is usually enough to extinguish the fire.

To find out more about the campaign follow #ThinkSprinkler on social media.