- Title:
-
Social and Economic Deprivation and Fatal Unintentional Domestic Fire Incidents in New Zealand 1988 - 1998
- Date:
- August 2000
- Organisations
- NZFS
- Authors:
- Mavis Duncanson, Alistair Woodward, Papaarangi Reid
- Location:
- New Zealand, New Zealand
Overview
This report reviews international literature concerning relationships between social and economic circumstances of households, and risk of death or injury in fire events. Analysis is undertaken of New Zealand fire fatality data from July 1988 to June 1998 compared with New Zealand indices of social and economic deprivation. International literature indicates that that the most socially and materially deprived households experience higher rates of fatal fire incidents.
NZ Fire Service incident report data were geocoded to census meshblock level and analysed with New Zealand indices of deprivation. It found:
- Fatal domestic incidents occurred disproportionately in dwellings in the most socially and materially deprived meshblocks.
- Rates of fatal fires in the most deprived decile were 4.5 times the rates in the least deprived decile.
Strategies to address this differential risk for fire related mortality need to identify and take into account barriers to household fire safety in these vulnerable population groups. In the longer term addressing the underlying socio-economic determinants through strategic policy development will also be important.
