Part A: Safety

When designing, upgrading or maintaining a house, immediate, life-threatening dangers must be given the highest priority. This section considers the following safety issues.

Electrocution

National data shows that less than 15 per cent of Indigenous houses have safe electrical systems. The reason for failure could be as simple as a faulty light switch or faulty power point, or could be an extreme combination of mice severed cabling, no earth connection of the house, faulty earth leakage protection safety switches and exposed electrical cables.

Gas explosion and asphyxiation

Data shows that gas is only available in a quarter of houses surveyed. The most common system was bottled gas and just over 50 percent of these systems were safely installed and maintained.  

Injury from fire

This section considers three important principles to reduce fire injuries¾prevention, detection and escape in the event of fire.

The causes of fire may be greatly increased in houses where data show gas installations are poor (50 per cent). Electrical faults may also lead to fires and data show that only 45 per cent of houses had all power points testing OK. The combined impact of vermin and electrical cables can increase fire risk and data show that mice and rates were present in almost 50 per cent of houses. Mice and rats cause damage to electrical cables and to appliances such as hot water systems, refrigerators and stoves.

Detection of fire is limited by the fact that less than half the houses have any detectors fitted and, of those houses with any detector fitted, only about a third were functioning.

Escape from house fires will be difficult if, as data show, security screens are often fixed to windows resulting in 45 per cent of houses with the only emergency escape route possible through external doors.

Structural collapse

The immediate collapse of buildings causing injury to people is rare in Australia, but termites, reactive soils and water damage over prolonged periods has resulted in data that indicate many houses need urgent repair.

Minor trauma or physical injury such as cuts and abrasions caused by inappropriate building materials are of a lower priority. These issues are covered in section B9 ‘Reducing hazards that cause trauma’.