A study of fatal fires in Norway by RISE shows that fire risk is not equally shared and that some social groups are much more vulnerable. 567 people died in 513 different fires in Norway over the ten years 2005-2014. Police reports were available and were analysed for 400 of these fires and medical records for nearly 250 of the victims.
Of the elderly victims (>67 years), risk factors such as impaired mobility or reduced cognitive abilities / dementia were often observed. For other victims, nearly 90% showed one or more risk factor such as drug abuse, mental illness, influence or alcohol or smoking at the time of the fire. RISE concludes that fire prevention efforts should involve medical and home services to address these identified social risks.
“Fatal fires are a social problem” BrandPosten #57 2018 https://www.sp.se/en/units/risesafe/safety/fire/brandposten/Sidor/default.aspx and full report in English “Analysis of fatal fires in Norway in the 2005-2014 period”, C. Sesseng et al., 2017 A17 20176:2 http://risefr.com/media/publikasjoner/upload/2017/a17-20176-2-analysis-of-fatal-fires-in-norway-in-the-2005-2014-period.pdf
See also the importance of alcohol consumption as a social risk factor in J. Giebultowicz et al., Poland, in pinfa Newsletter n°85