But what seems to have been overlooked is that, despite fire deaths were decreasing, fire injuries have continued to rise at an alarming rate. Furthermore the number of dwelling fires were steeply increasing - this reached a record high of 66,300 in 1997 . To date this seems to have elicited little public attention. That people die randomly in ones and twos across the country is not newsworthy. As a society we are dismissive of the risks of fire and individually we assume that we are too intelligent to have fires.
Fires only happen to other people .
Perhaps it is also our primeval fear of fire that we would simply prefer to ignore the danger and hide under the bedclothes. Risk Although fire strikes indiscriminately and everyone is at risk, analysis of fire statistics shows that certain groups suffer higher than average casualty rates. The disadvantaged include the young and the old, the physically and mentally disadvantaged, and those under the influence of drink and drugs. In the event of a fire these people may not be physically able to escape, or may not understand the danger or both. There is also a significant section of the community that does not respond to community fire safety campaigns.