13 November 2013
The UK's Department for Communities and Local Government statistics for 2011 to 2012 show that during that period there were 380 fire-related fatalities in Britain, 24 fewer than in 2010 to 2011 and lower than in any year in the last fifty years. The highest number of fatalities recorded was 967 in 1985 to 1986. Through the 1990s and 2000s there was a general downward trend.
In the 2010 to 2011 period 76 percent of fire-related deaths occurred in domestic premises, 53 percent of which resulted from being overcome by gas, smoke or toxic fumes. During the same period there were 24,100 fires recorded in buildings other than dwellings, of which 70 percent were accidental. 25 people died and there were 1,200 non-fatal casualties in fires in buildings other than dwellings. There were 28,000 road vehicle fires in the same period.
