Hot Work & Fire Watch
The fire from hot work usually starts after the torch is off — smouldering in the wall cavity or the pile of debris nobody moved, while everyone's packing up.
How to run it
Read it through once, then talk it — don't recite it. Five minutes at the start of the shift, crew standing where the work happens. Under O. Reg. 213/91, s. 14(3)–(4), the talk is held by a supervisor or a competent person the supervisor appoints — and the sign-in sheet is what proves it happened.
Talk through these points
- Hot work means a check before the sparks: what's within reach of sparks and heat — including the other side of the wall?
- Move the combustibles or shield them. Ontario's construction regulation (O. Reg. 213/91, ss. 122-124) requires precautions against fire for welding and cutting — this is that, on paper.
- Charged extinguisher within reach — not 'somewhere on site.' The person doing the work knows exactly where.
- A fire watch during the work and AFTER it — smoulders surface long after the torch stops. Assign a name, not a vibe.
- Permits aren't bureaucracy: the hot work permit is the checklist that catches the one thing you'd have missed.
- Gas cylinders upright, secured, capped when idle, hoses inspected. The fuel side of hot work deserves its own respect.
Ask the crew
- Where would sparks land that we haven't looked — floor openings, the far side?
- Who is the fire watch on today's cutting, by name?
- How long do we actually watch after the torch stops?
The answers are the real talk. If a question lands on a live hazard, write it down and assign it a name and a date.
Paper it
A talk without a record didn't happen, as far as anyone who asks is concerned. Print these free:
A new talk every week.
The toolbox talks page rotates a featured topic weekly — bookmark it, or grab the talk by email every Monday.