Inspector Sands

Inspector Sands (or sometimes Mr Sands), is a code for fire in the United Kingdom. Obviously it would not be appropriate for the service staff of a store to announce a fire publicly, so this code is used to alert the appropriate staff to the danger without upsetting customers. The wording differs from place to place and in the Underground network a recorded “Inspector Sands” warning is automatically triggered by smoke detectors. In some shops you will hear the code used in a phrase such as “Will inspector Sands please report to the men’s changing room” if the fire is in the men’s changing room. It was played on a continuous loop through the underground during the July 7, 2005 bombings, and has been incorrectly described as a code word for a bomb – the frequently used code for a bomb in the Underground is “Mr Gravel” – for example, “Mr Gravel is in the foyer”. Mr Sands (or sometimes Mr Johnson) is also used in theaters in the case of fire.