BACKGROUND : Fire is one of the essential elements, which provides us heat and light. It serves various purposes in both
domestic and industrial settings. High rise apartments are the norm in metropolitan cities, knowledge, attitude and
practices of fire safety in apartments play a huge role in preventing accidental fires.
OBJECTIVES : 1. To assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of fire safety among apartment residents of Chennai. 2. To
determine the factors influencing the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding fire safety among apartment residents
of Chennai.
METHODS : A community based cross sectional study was conducted from September to November 2021, among 200
residents belonging to an apartment complex in Chennai city. Data was collected using a semi-structured, self-administered
questionnaire. Data were entered in Microsoft excel and analysed using SPSS version 16.
RESULTS : In this study, males (48%) and females (52%) were almost equally represented. The mean age of the participants
were 43.27 ± 16.62 years. Majority of the participants were degree graduates (51%). Majority of the households had 4
members. 61.5% had a dependent (person aged below 15 years or above 60 years) living with them. More than threefour
ths (76.5%) of the par ticipants belonged to upper middle (II) socio-economic class, as per modified kuppusamy socioeconomic
scale updated for 2020. In this study, 25% of the participants were from a rural background and 34.5% of the
study participants were tenants and the remainder were owners. The mean duration of staying in this apartment was
found to be 9.78 ± 6.504 years. No fire safety mock drill had been conducted in this apartment complex. None of the
participants had done a fire risk assessment of their home. Majority of the residents had fair knowledge (53%), attitude
(89%) and practice (77.5%) regarding fire safety. Significant association was found between presence of dependents,
urban back ground, ownership status and knowledge regarding fire safety. Significant association was found between
socio-economic status, knowledge and attitude regarding fire safety. Significant association was found between attitude,
knowledge and practices regarding fire safety. No significant associations were found between age, gender, education
qualification, socio-economic class and knowledge regarding fire safety.
CONCLUSION : The majority of the participants had a fair knowledge, attitude and practice. Fire safety mock drills and fire
risk assessment had never been conducted in this apartment, hence one such mock drill can be conducted to improve the
individual perceptions regarding fire safety in residences.