Having to Deal with a Business Place on Fire? Check out the Strategic Steps, and Quickly Get Back to Operations in a Short Time!

Disasters that occur in business places do not have to come from nature, but can also come from human carelessness. For example, in the event where the business burns, it is clear that this needs proper disclosure so that the losses that arise do not get bigger.

There are many things that must be known for you, a business owner, so that you have a high awareness of the risks that can occur in the workplace.

The place where the business burns is not only seen in terms of financial losses, but also the safety risks of employees and customers. Therefore, let's take a closer look at the important points related to this, and the basic steps that can be taken to reduce the risks and impacts, as well as steps to build a business after the fire so that it can be productive again.

Emergency Procedures when a Business Place Burns

There are quite a lot of references that can be used to see emergency procedures when a business premises catch fire. However, one of the relatively complete was submitted on the official website of the Cirebon City Government Fire and Rescue Service, on damkar.cirebonkota.go.id.

• Stay calm and don't panic. Take a breath, focus, and remember the safety measures that have been trained.
• Give an immediate warning. You can shout out loud to get everyone to notice the situation, or by pressing the nearest fire alarm.
• Evacuate from the site safely. Leave buildings via evacuation routes, avoid elevators, cover your nose and mouth with wet cloths, and help trapped children, the elderly, and people with disabilities.
• Close the door to prevent the fire from spreading. If possible, close the door of the room that burns when exiting. This can inhibit the spread of fire and reduce the entry of oxygen.
• Use a fire extinguisher when the fire has not grown. As long as the fire is still small, maximize the existing fire extinguisher.
• Close the door gap if it is trapped. Use a wet cloth to plug the door opening, look for areas near the window for air, and mark the firefighter.
• Contact the fire department. Contact the fire emergency services and inform them of the location, current situation, and whether or not there are people trapped.
• Do not re-enter the building. Whatever happens if you're already outside the building, don't re-enter.
• Put the safety of yourself, your employees, and your customers first. Remember, property and property losses can be reimbursed at a later date, but the loss of life will be a permanent loss to your family and business.

What are the Most Common Causes of Fires in Business Premises?

Activities in the business premises are obviously not few, and involve many variables and people. Nevertheless, there are some of the most common causes that trigger fires in business premises.

1. Faulty Electrical Equipment

Damage to electrical equipment can trigger a fire. Short circuits, electrical short circuits, sparks, and power tools that catch fire or explode, are one of the main triggers.

2. Flammable or Explosive Materials

The second trigger for a business to catch fire is the presence of flammable or explosive materials. These materials include paper, cardboard, wood, chemicals, or other substances that have explosive or fire-causing properties.

3. Dirt and Cluttered Areas

The third trigger is an unclean and untidy work area. Make no mistake, this can trigger an increase in temperature, and the failure of the cooling device function so that it makes electronic equipment hot and easily triggers sparks or overheating.

4. Human Factor

Human error can also increase the risk of fire. The use of machines that do not follow procedures, do not follow safety and health protocols, spilled flammable liquids, and excessive use of equipment, can all trigger fires.

5. Cigarette butts

Although small, the embers on cigarettes exposed to flammable materials can trigger a fire. In a short time, the fire can grow and spark a large fire.

6. Cooking Activities

Whether in a restaurant business or an office that has a kitchen area, this cooking activity must also be done carefully and according to procedures. Cooking jelly involves a fire or utensils that work at high temperatures. When careless, this can start a fire.

7. Intentional Irresponsible Parties

In some cases, fires are also triggered by intentional actions from irresponsible parties. These parties can range from competitors who compete unfairly, to people who have malicious intentions in the business you manage.

Post-Fire Business Recovery Strategy

Businesses that experience major fires will obviously suffer significant losses. This is why it is necessary to have the right post-fire business recovery strategy.

Of course, the strategies below can be used as a reference, with adjustments to the  business value you have.

1. Business Area Security

After the fire is extinguished, ensure the safety of the location. In buildings that have just burned there is a risk of structural collapse, residual heat, or even electrical short circuits.

Make sure everything is safe before entering the area and start mapping the losses and damage suffered.

2. Conduct Damage Evaluation and Investigation of the Triggers

An investigation into the triggers for a business place to burn is one of the important points, to find out why this can happen. The results of this investigation and evaluation will help you reduce the risk of similar things happening in the future.

3. Audit of Fire Detection, Warning, and Suppression Systems

Audits of detection, warning, and firefighting systems are mandatory. If all three are working properly, there should be no major fire incidents that burn down your building and all of your office equipment.

4. Communicate with All Parties

Communicating with all parties including employees, customers, and other stakeholders is mandatory. The goal is for all information to be clear and each related party knows the true condition.

Provide clarity to employees about employment status and wages, then to customers regarding compensation, and stakeholders about matters related to business conditions.

5. Contact Insurance Company for Claims

This is where reliable Business Insurance plays an important role, as it can help you reduce the total amount of losses incurred.

Claims on existing losses then need to be filed, so that you get the promised benefits.

In some business insurance, there is a guarantee during store repairs so that  the  business income you have will continue to come in during repairs.

Of course, you have to choose the right business insurance product to get these benefits.

6. Review, Planning, and Redevelopment

After making sure all parties get clarity, it's time for you to go back to reviewing, planning, and rebuilding the burned business site.

This time, do it more carefully considering previous events. Implement better preventive measures, so that the potential for fires and other disasters in the workplace can be reduced to a minimum.

Long-Term Investment Reduces the Risk of Business Burning

Many of the entrepreneurs feel that investing to reduce fire risk is an expensive move.

In fact, if you consider the risks and impacts, it is clearly much greater than the investment cost of a system that can prevent and extinguish fires before devouring all the business assets owned. If estimated, the installation of a complete protection system for medium-scale factories or offices will be around IDR 500,000,000 to IDR 2,000,000,000. This is obviously much smaller than the potential losses you would have to suffer if a fire occurred. On the same business scale, the losses can reach more than IDR 50,000,000,000.

It looks more reasonable when realized in the estimate above, right?

After all, this protection system will also be usable for the long term. This means that you will have the necessary protection for the next few years, with costs that are clear from the start.

In addition to a rapid fire prevention and extinguishing system, it's also a good idea to have Business Insurance that can provide benefits and assistance to get your business back to normal.

The Right Business Insurance: An Emergency Safety Net for Fatal Conditions

Having the right business insurance will go a long way in helping the business recovery process and various affairs after your business has experienced a fire, or other major disaster that brings fundamental losses.

Starting from risk protection, compensation for losses, helping to provide a solid foundation, to providing a sense of security to businesses related to existing risks, all the aim is that the business can be developed and operate optimally to get optimal profits.

However, the selection of this insurance should not be arbitrary, because it must consider the credibility of the insurance company and the benefits provided.

AXA Insurance Indonesia, is one of the reliable companies that offers Business Insurance to you in the form of SmartBusiness Insurance.

This insurance provides compensation to the insured for discomfort caused by the occurrence of one or more causes written in the policy. Such as the termination or closure of the business due to physical damage to the property owned, guaranteeing the insured from the risk of death, permanent disability directly triggered by an accident, and the insured experiencing prolonged illness so that he must be hospitalized for more than 20 days.

Dealing with the conditions where the business burns is indeed not something that all business people want. But with careful planning and SmartBusiness Insurance from AXA Insurance Indonesia, you can return to operations in a short time with a more solid foundation and ready to compete with competitors!

 

 

References:

• https://damkar.cirebonkota.go.id/artikel/9-langkah-penting-yang-perlu-dilakukan-ketika-terjadi-kebakaran
• https://bakorwilbojonegoro.jatimprov.go.id/prosedur-evakuasi-keadaan-darurat-saat-terjadi-kebakaran
• https://ppid.surabaya.go.id/prosedur-evakuasi-dalam-keadaan-darurat-kebakaran
• https://swb.co.id/id/blog/64-3-penyebab-kebakaran-di-tempat-kerja
• https://iosh.com/news-and-opinion/8-common-causes-of-workplace-fires
• https://www.lintasarta.net/blog/cloud-services/menjaga-keberlangsungan-bisnis-dengan-solusi-disaster-recovery/
• https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/9581-natural-disaster-recovery.html
• https://dinarintiduba.com/apa-yang-harus-dilakukan-setelah-terjadi-kebakaran-panduan-recovery-untuk-pemilik-bangunan/
• https://dinarintiduba.com/biaya-vs-risiko-investasi-sistem-fire-safety-masih-dianggap-mahal/
• https://www.adiwarna.co.id/id/lindungi-aset-anda-mengapa-sistem-sprinkler-kebakaran-adalah-investasi-krusial/
• https://askrida.com/blog/5-manfaat-asuransi-untuk-kegiatan-bisnis