Our 3-Step Escape Plan

  • First Escape Route
  • Second Escape Route
  • Meeting Place
Notes

Use this space to note any additional information about your escape plan, i.e. who will assist

Your checklist

  • Get low

    Smoke is poisonous and more deadly than flames.

    If you breathe smoke for more than a few breaths it can kill you.

  • Be fast

    A house fire can kill you in less than three minutes.

    Don't spend time trying to save possessions.

  • Close doors

    A closed door buys you time.

    It slows down the spread of fire, giving you more time to get to safety.

  • Get out - stay out!

    People have died by going back into a fire.

    Don't leave the meeting place to go back inside for any reason.

Call emergency services as soon as you are out and safe. Ask for FIRE.

Clearly state your address and let the operator know it anyone is still inside or has not made it to the safe meeting place.

Emergency call 111 Emergency text 111
Fire & Emergency New Zealand

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAs)

What are PFAS?

PFAS means ‘per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances’ and is a collective term for more than 3,000 compounds containing fluorine that are used in a wide variety of consumer products, including food packaging, cookware, clothing, carpets, furniture, and cleaning products. They have also been used in firefighting foams that are used to fight liquid fuel fires (Class B foams).

Class A foams, which we use for vegetation fires and combustible materials such as timber and rubbish have always been fluorine free.

PFAS compounds last for a long time before breaking down. Because of this they are found in the environment worldwide, including in humans and animals. People are exposed to small amounts of some PFAS in everyday life, and most people have small amounts of these substances in their systems.

PFAS are an emerging contaminant and the science is continually evolving, so there is no clear picture yet of what the health effects of PFAS are on humans.

All-of-Government approach

The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) oversees an all-of-Government response to the issue of potential environmental contamination from PFAS.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand has been involved in the Ministry’s PFAS programme, along with other government agencies because we are a Crown entity, a landowner, and we use firefighting foams.

More information on the PFAS programme can be found on the Ministry’s website.

Assessing our sites around New Zealand

We have over 650 sites across the country and, as our past use of Class B foams during training may have resulted in some historical PFAS contamination, we have completed a programme of site assessments. A summary of our work can be found here.

Our transition to fluorine-free foams

The HSNO Fire Fighting Chemicals Group Standard 2021 HSR002573 sets out a timetable for staged withdrawal of PFAS foams.

Fire and Emergency no longer uses any foams containing PFAS – all our foams are now fluorine free. Our last remaining Class B PFAS foam was removed from service in December 2022 and has since been disposed of.

We continue to monitor research and developments on firefighter health impacts of foams containing PFAS by our fellow emergency agencies in Australia.

Questions?

If you have any questions about our investigations or our use of firefighting foams, please contact us through our General enquiries and questions page.