Scary news from Welsh shores today. Film fans in Swansea got a wee bit more than they bargained for during a filming of the blockbusting film ‘Avatar’. During the gunfire and explosions on screen, there was a small amount of pyrotechnics taking place off screen, as a speaker In the Vue cinema in Swansea caught fire. That is speaker as in audio device, not as in one of those rather irritating people who insist upon yapping their way through a film that you have paid a ridiculously large amount of money to see.
Apparently the film-viewers took a while to realise what was happening, as the action in the film was peaking, and most people were engrossed. Darren Stuart, who was watching the film with his wife, said that there were a lot of explosions happening and so they didn’t think very much of it. However, they soon noticed that there was what looked like a light on the screen, which gradually got larger and larger.
People began running about, and the lights were turned on, and the cinema-goers were asked to leave. He added that as soon as they got nearer to the screen when they were evacuating the area, they could see that it was a fire.
Staff from the Vue cinema managed to tackle the fire with a fire extinguisher, and make it safe. A spokeswoman confirmed that there had been a small fire which had damaged a speaker located behind the cinema screen. All the people who were in the Monday afternoon screening were offered tickets for another screening of the film, so they could see how the story ended.
Now, a fire involving electrical items such as speakers is best tackled with a CO2 fire extinguisher. These little beasties are specifically designed for fires involving electrical items such as computers and speaker systems as well as flammable liquids (like petrol, spirits, diesel, solvents and oils). The way that they work is that the carbon dioxide displaces oxygen – and oxygen is one of the things that a fire needs in order to keep burning. So, remove the oxygen and you have stopped that pesky fire from burning. They are also clean agents, because they do not leave any residue after discharge – therefore they are ideal for sensitive electronics.
So, the moral of this story – always take a convenient CO2 fire extinguisher with you when you go to the cinema, in case of unexpected blazes. Hmmmm…or perhaps stick with popcorn and leave the fire safety equipment provision to the staff…
