Civil Defence has advised people to not come into central Auckland today to avoid the smoke from the fire, which has been burning since yesterday afternoon. Emergency services continue to fight the fire today, hampered by strong winds.
Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, workplaces are required to manage the risks to workers as far as is reasonably practicable. In this situation the fumes from the fire may be a risk to people’s health.
As an employer some things to consider include:
- Ensure workers stay away from the fire site and smoke.
- Where possible allow workers to work from home, or at another site within your company, outside of the Auckland CBD.
- Risk will vary depending on workers’ proximity, personal susceptibility, variation in materials burning, and ventilation conditions at your place of work.
- If you work in an air-conditioned building or office, seek advice from your building maintenance advisor or a competent person as to whether to turn the air conditioning off, or any other actions to take to prevent smoke entering the building.
If your workers have to come into the CBD, follow the advice from the Auckland Public Health Service(external link).
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