Twelve people have died in a west London tower block fire and the number of deaths are expected to rise, police have said. [...]
Grenfell Tower underwent a two-year £10m refurbishment as part of a wider transformation of the estate, that was completed last year. [...]
Before and during the refurbishment, the local Grenfell Action Group claimed that the block constituted a fire risk and residents warned that site access for emergency vehicles was "severely restricted".
— BBC
While it's still too early to determine the cause of the fire, the BBC reports that "before and during the refurbishment, the local Grenfell Action Group claimed that the block constituted a fire risk and residents warned that site access for emergency vehicles was "severely restricted"."
Latest updates on the disastrous blaze can be found in The Guardian's live feed here.
UPDATE, June 14, 2017, 2:06 PM EST:
Latest reports raise the fear that the tower may be seriously in danger of collapsing with structural cracks appearing in the corners. Firefighters have been pulled out of the tower.
Image via @mrgeorgeclarke on Instagram.
7 Comments
ONE egress stair? I know codes were different when this was built, but really?
They should at least not settle with the minimum standards! I guess with buildings this big, they shouldn't.
Libertarian policies at work, or should I say; Future Libertarian Policies.
Sprinklers
Harriet Harman told the BBC's The World at One, "Councils want to fit sprinklers in their tower blocks, but it comes down to money. The government has been cutting the money to councils. If you cut money to councils, you can't put in sprinklers", whilst Judge Frances Kirkham, who dealt with the inquest into the Lakanal House fire deaths, maintained the government should "encourage providers of housing in high-rise residential buildings" to "consider the retrofitting of sprinkler systems".[55]
There is no reason not to put sprinklers even if the council didnt have enough budget, because it's for safety and security, money is not the problem but the amendment of building regulations and properly working on coordination about the proper funding of these building neccessities.
Government should not just encourage the retrofitting of sprinklers but IMPLEMENT RULES OR MANDATE THAT IT SHOULD BE PRACTICED.
how would sprinklers affect the blaze which was mostly contained to the exterior cladding?
thought is started inside?
oh it's you again
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