S&R Egg Farm, La Grange, WI Photo: WGN.org, Feb. 2, 2014

United Poultry Concerns Petition to the National Fire Protection Association

Imagine the horror: 300,000 egg-laying hens, trapped in one of 14 buildings, died in a massive fire at the S&R Egg Farm in La Grange, Wisconsin January 31, 2014. Preventable fires are frequent in farmed animal housing facilities in which thousands of chickens, turkeys, pigs, dairy cows and other animals are helplessly confined and totally unprotected from fires because agribusiness refuses to install sprinklers and smoke control systems.

For example in 2012, more than 600,000 farmed animals – mainly chickens and turkeys – died in fires in commercial housing facilities in the United States, and these are just the publicly reported fires.

Responding to the tragedy of unprotected farmed animals, in 2012, the National Fire Protection Association – “the authority on fire, electrical, and building safety” – passed an amendment recommending that all newly-constructed farm animal housing facilities be equipped with sprinklers and smoke control systems. NFPA Technical Committee member, Joe Scibetta, pleaded to the committee:

“When caught in a fire, animals don’t understand why they can’t breathe or why they are in such agony. They do, however, perceive and are conscious of the terrible sensations of burning, suffocation, and pain. . . . In commercial animal housing facilities, when we confine animals to suit human purposes, we have an obligation to secure fire protection for them, especially due to the fact that in most of the recent . . . animal housing fire cases, humans were not on hand to effect rescue.”

Unfortunately, the agribusiness lobby for the poultry and egg, dairy, pork and beef industries killed the amendment claiming that fire protection installations would cost too much. Despite overwhelming initial support for the amendment to protect farmed animals from preventable fires, some members of the NFPA’s Technical Committee listened to the agribusiness lobby, and changed their vote.

Please sign this petition urging the National Fire Protection Association to pass an amendment mandating the owners of farmed animal housing facilities to install sprinklers and smoke control devices to protect chickens and other farmed animals from preventable fires.

Thank you.

United Poultry Concerns
www.upc-online.org

UPC’s National Fire Protection Association campaign for farmed animals

-----------

To: National Fire Protection Association

1 Batterymarch Park
Quincy, MA 02169-7471
Tel: +1 617 770-3000
Fax: +1 617 770-0700
stds_admin@nfpa.org
publicaffairs@nfpa.org

I recently learned that 300,000 hens died in agony unable to escape when a fire broke out on January 31, 2014 destroying one of 14 buildings in which the hens were trapped at the S&R Egg Farm in La Grange, Wisconsin.

As you know, thousands of chickens and other farmed animals die horribly each year trapped in buildings they cannot get out of, yet in 2012 the NFPA’s commendable fire protection amendment, calling upon owners of farmed animals to install sprinklers and smoke control devices in all newly-constructed animal housing facilities, was withdrawn in response to agribusiness opposition.

That is terrible! The NFPA is uniquely positioned to mandate fire protection installations for the largest number of sentient individuals victimized by preventable fires in the United States. As you are the world’s leading advocate for fire prevention, I implore you to use your authority on behalf of millions of animals who cannot defend themselves in buildings from which they cannot escape and whose owners refuse to invest voluntarily in fire protection systems, but instead allow their animals to slowly burn and suffocate to death.

As NFPA Technical Committee member, Joe Scibetta, pleaded in 2012:

“When caught in a fire, animals don’t understand why they can’t breathe or why they are in such agony. They do, however, perceive and are conscious of the terrible sensations of burning, suffocation, and pain. . . . In commercial animal housing facilities, when we confine animals to suit human purposes, we have an obligation to secure fire protection for them, especially due to the fact that in most of the recent . . . animal housing fire cases, humans were not on hand to effect rescue.”

Please amend the 150 Standard for Fire & Life Safety in Animal Housing to require installation of sprinklers and smoke control systems in all newly-constructed animal housing facilities holding animals designated “Category B” by the NFPA. I count on you to do the right thing for these animals. Thank you.

Sincerely,

[Your name]