HITLERS ALLYMinistry of Production, Great George Street, London, S.W.i. November, 1942 I have to ask for exhausting toil in aid of war production—but there is a way in which we can all help towards winning the war merely by being careful. Fire may, in a few hours, undo the work of thousands of our fellow men on land and sea, and it is the duty of all of us, by constant watchfulness, to make sure that no fire starts from lack of care or thought on our part. Minister of Production, fart°r ^ ststf'as a'ief Incet" ia the sho*0’ d W* a ^patv\&5e ec°aTbY ftte. ~Vo„aY ^i^tx wo* D4 ma^eI ‘ ,na%'ff' : \, tea50'' teco5" c°«'e.W't'6.ffott- tV'ed%a(ltt'e \a °tde\ d''?f„«a\ «asWBe;, ,v>e ab0^1 ^asv*b”_r vy\£ a &a^r^nca\ c° *sssw d\speT bo^ dtab0^ of da - teT ec^P^* Arp. \^sUl \s ^eU£Lr t^atv vie* 1 of"^'50^ vh>a“''lYide'v,eU ffcg&S5* ,-> Extract from “ The Times” 26-8-42FIRES IN WAR-TIME AID THE ENEMY Destruction by fire on the scale associated with intensive air bombardment has tended to obscure the importance to us, as a Nation, of avoiding fires for which we and not the enemy are responsible. In the first ten months of 1942 the bill for such fires in terms of money is estimated to exceed £10,500,000. This figure by itself reveals only a fraction of the true loss to the Country. Stocks and machinery, if replaceable, have to be renewed at the risk of men’s lives and of shipping ; a factory burnt out means the loss of its productive capacity, may be for many months ; houses and other buildings that have to be restored or re-erected involve the diversion of labour and materials from other essential work. In fact, any fire helps the enemy in his purpose and hinders us in our’s. Most fires, apart from those of enemy origin, are caused by carelessness—a discarded cigarette end, an unextinguished match, failure to observe or to enforce some simple precaution, and the like. Every citizen should be his own fire guard, by guarding against this commonest of human failings—lack of care. Fire springing from a moment’s carelessness may delay the delivery of ships, aeroplanes, tanks or other vital equipment of war and the consequences of that delay may be fateful for men’s lives and, indeed, for the security of this Country. Fire Insurance Companies will give you the best technical advice on the measures to adopt, whether in Factory.Warehouse.Farm, Shop, Cinema, or Dwelling, for preventing the outbreak of fire and for confining Fires which do occur within narrow limits, but it is the individual himself wherever he may be, who can, by the constant exercise of vigilant care, do most to remove this drag from the Country’s war effort. In this Fight against Fire, we can be greatly helped by ideas and suggestions from those who are in the closest touch with actual working conditions. If anyone can think up new ideas for the strengthening or varying of our attack, I hope he will do so and send them to me. The following pages will, it is hoped, focus attention on certain main aspects of fire prevention. Each picture page can be detached and affixed to, say, a works’ notice board or similar prominent place and changed at suitable intervals so that everybody, Manage- ment and staff alike, may absorb its message—that it is the plain duty of us all, at this time, to see that by no act or omission of our’s is the enemy helped by fires which we could have prevented. Additional copies of this handbook and copies of the picture pages in the form of posters (size 15" X 10") can be obtained free on request to your Insurance Company. A form of applica- tion is provided on the back page. I, Bartholomew Lane, London, E.C.2. December, 1942. Chairman, Fire Offices’ Committee. Common Carelessness is the Most Common Cause of Fires.EVERY FIRE IS SABOTAGE IN WAR-TIME/ Fire to-day is an enemy behind the lines. Everything destroyed by fire is a loss to the National strength. Carelessness is the cause of over 50% of all fires—and dropping of un-extinguished matches ranks high in the list of causes. BE ALWAYS ON GUARDFire is resourceful, crafty and treacherous. Its allies are everywhere. In every home, every factory, every ware- house, there are hundreds of them, waiting till carelessness opens the way for destruction. The match is one of them ; the cigarette-end another ; waste-paper and litter; oily cloths or waste carelessly thrown away. HIDDEN ENEMIES YOU MUSTJ FIGHT Fire’s destructiveness is not confined to the physical property it devours. It reaches out its long arm to hurt the workers and the producers of raw materials t cancels contracts it delays shipments it stops production hinders war efforts and aids our enemies. YOU CAN DAILY HELP WAR PRODUCTION BY DAILY PRACTISING FIRE PREVENTIONmoney enough to build 2,000 FIGHTER PLANES. Last year the property loss in Great Britain by fires (non-enemy) was over £10,000,000—the cost of 2,000 Spitfires. Of the fires contributing to this loss, OVER 50% WERE PREVENTABLE. You help Britain's war effort when you PRACTISE FIRE PREVENTIONhamper Britain’s WAR EFFORT 'EVERYONE LIKES A GOOD FIRE — in its right place! but the right place is not a waste-paper basket, or amongst oily rags in a corner. A Single Careless Act on YOUR part may cause a fire which maynot A WAR CASUALTY — a busy industrial works engaged on vital war production—laid waste by fire YOU HELP BRITAIN’S WAR EFFORT when you PRACTISE FIRE PREVENTION\^s -0 uy yysy-yy^?/y\. X ss * * * * § <> <> <> * $ $ I ! i I I CAUTION PREVENTS FIRES * * j * * I * ss <> * <> * make it your contribution to \s*C/%4y*&>