Quote:
Originally Posted by Osem
I was listening to an expert on this sort of thing and he was saying how critical a number of other factors are in order to make this cladding system safe - both in terms of other materials used in conjunction with the cladding and the correct installation of measures to prevent the spread of fire via the stack effect for example. It seems to me that any one of them not implemented correctly could have compromised the entire installation. What'll be critical is identifying whether this is a localised issue due to, say, incorrect installation or a fundamental misunderstanding of the fire risks associated with this cladding. We saw with 9/11 that (if you don't happen to believe they were blown up by the CIA or whatever) buildings which were designed to be able to cope with virtually anything collapsed in the extreme conditions resulting from the impact and ignition of aviation fuel from 2 jet liners. IIRC all the design testing done confirmed they shouldn't have collapsed but they did nonetheless and I'm still not sure they've found out what went wrong with 100% certainty and whether anything has been done to prevent the same thing happening again in any of America's other huge buildings.
Another big problem I can see here is the information being given to residents. They were told to stay put and in this case, with hindsight, that may not have been the best option. Had they all decided to evacuate ASAP the death toll may have been reduced but on the other hand in the panic and smoke things could have turned out far worse. Right now anyone living in one of these blocks is going to be wanting clarity on what to do in the event of fire and how likely are they to want to follow the current advice? God forbid we have another entirely preventable tragedy caused as a result of the uncertainties resulting from this one.
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In normal circumstances the advice to stay put in your flat is sound. The cellular structure of multi storey is sound and no fire should spread to an adjacent flat.
Those who don't feel safe staying put should be able to leave via the fire escape/stairwells as these again being sealed off by fire doors should be free of smoke and should fire arrive at them the intumescent strips in the door frame should hold fire back for 30mins minimum.
I know jumping to conclusions should be avoided but it does appear blindingly obvious that the combustability of the cladding has led to this unfortunate disaster. The cladding appears to have circumvented every inbuilt safety measure and allowed the fire to spread everywhere above the source with such rapidity.
I would much rather the money that is going to be spent on a public enquirey (which will be millions governments don't mind spending) be spent be spent on improving safety, making sure any cladding materials are non-conbustable and installing sprinlker systems at least in the communal areas and exit stairwells. I'm sure residents won't mind having a free shower in the event they need egress from the building in the event of fire.