A FEW FACTS ABOUT SPRINKLERS
The following statistics are taken from the Activity report and statistics on fires reported in 2012, prepared by the Ministère de la Sécurité publique.
- In 2010, 2011 and 2012, there were an average of 20 building fires per day across Québec—approximately one fire every 72 minutes.
- In 2012, 7,225 building fires were reported, for losses estimated at $467.9 million.
- Only 10% of buildings that caught fire were equipped with sprinklers.
- A National Fire Protection Association survey of 58,000 fires revealed a 96.2% efficacy rate for automatic sprinkler systems.
Probable causes of all fires reported in Québec in 2012 :
| Cause | % |
| Undetermined or unknown | 59 |
| Mechanical or electrical failure or malfunction | 14 |
| Human error | 9 |
| Incident referred for police investigation | 7 |
| Improper use of a flammable material (e.g., cooking oil) | 4 |
| Other (e.g., natural causes) | 2 |
| Improper use of an ignition source (e.g., playing with matches) | 2 |
| Improper use of equipment (e.g., electrical overload) | 2 |
| Faulty design, construction or installation | 1 |
Breakdown of building fires reported in 2012, by time of day:
| Time | % |
| 12 a.m. to 4:59 a.m. | 14 |
| 5 a.m. to 9:59 a.m. | 15 |
| 10 a.m. to 2:59 p.m. | 23 |
| 3 p.m. to 7:59 p.m. | 29 |
| 8 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. | 19 |
Breakdown of building fires reported in 2012, by week day:
| Day | % |
| Monday | 15 |
| Tuesday | 14 |
| Wednesday | 15 |
| Thursday | 14 |
| Friday | 14 |
| Saturday | 14 |
| Sunday | 14 |
Breakdown of building fires reported in 2012, by month:
| Month | % |
| January | 11 |
| February | 9 |
| March | 10 |
| April | 9 |
| May | 8 |
| June | 7 |
| July | 7 |
| August | 7 |
| September | 7 |
| October | 7 |
| November | 9 |
| December | 9 |
Breakdown of building fires reported in 2012, by building type:
| Building type | % |
| Residential | 69 |
| Public/services | 8 |
| Commercial | 7 |
| Industrial | 6 |
| Agricultural | 4 |
| Undetermined | 4 |
| Other (fishing, hunting, mining) | 2 |
Estimated material losses related to building fires reported in 2012 :
| Location | Damages |
| Buildings | $271.6 M |
| Contents | $165.0 M |
| Exteriors | $31.3 M |
| Total | $467.9 M |
Point of origin of residential building fires reported in 2012:
| Description | % |
| Kitchen | 27 |
| Other location (home business) | 12 |
| Outdoor balcony, roof, wall | 10 |
| Indoor garage, storage locker, warehouse, cold room, etc. (storage area) | 9 |
| Living room, sitting room, library, etc. | 8 |
| Yard, deck, outdoor parking space, etc. (outdoor area) | 8 |
| Undetermined | 7 |
| Bedroom | 6 |
| Entrance, hallway, indoor staircase and other high-traffic areas | 3 |
| Bathroom | 4 |
| Chimney, pipe, ventilation duct, etc. | 2 |
| Hot water tank closet, boiler room, electrical room, workshop, etc. | 3 |
| Dining room | 1 |
See also : Quebec's legislative framework