IFSEC Global provides an update. Over 100 firefighters tackled a blaze for nearly three hours at a block of flats covered in ACM cladding at East London’s New Providence Wharf in Poplar on the morning of 7th May.
Preliminary report from London Fire Brigade (LFB)
A serious failure of a smoke ventilation system that resulted in the building acting like a “broken chimney” left residents’ only escape route smoke logged during the New Providence Wharf fire, a preliminary report from the London Fire Brigade has said.
The report confirms that the fire started in a consumer unit, known more commonly as the fuse board, in an 8th floor flat. Due to the severity of the fire more testing is needed to find out how exactly the consumer unit failed. The fire then travelled out of an open balcony window. At the same time smoke poured into the corridor through a flat door that had accidentally been kept open.
The Brigade’s provisional investigation into the fire has found that in this particular instance, ACM cladding panels did not significantly contribute to the external spread of the fire. The spread of the fire on the outside of the building from floors 8 to 11 is believed to have been facilitated by timber decking on the balconies.
Government advice issued in January 2020 states that: “Balconies should not assist fire spread along the external wall. Balconies including combustible materials may not meet an appropriate standard of safety and could pose a risk to the health and safety of residents and other building users.”
The London Fire Brigade has highlighted that its response to New Providence Wharf fire demonstrated the significant changes the Brigade has made since the Grenfell Tower fire:
- Increased numbers of firefighters and appliances initially sent to high rise fires as standard
- Familliarisation visits conducted by crews prior to the fire
- The introduction of new evacuation procedures
- Improved communications between the control room and the incident ground
- Fire escape hoods
There were 35 rescues, 22 involving fire escape hoods, with two people taken to hospital.
The initial findings from Senior Brigade Fire Investigators show that the smoke detectors on the 8th floor communal corridor failed to operate both the Automatic Opening Vent (AOV) and the cross-corridor fire doors.
In the report, the Brigade pointed out that it is the responsibility of the building owner or manager to make sure the AOV and other smoke ventilation systems operate correctly. It has since urged all those responsible for other high rise buildings to check these as a priority and ensure they are regularly inspected.
It has also urged building managers and owners to check the materials used on external balconies and make modifications if deemed necessary. The Brigade’s parallel investigation into possible breaches of fire safety regulations at New Providence Wharf at the time of the fire is continuing.
London Fire Brigade Deputy Commissioner Richard Mills said: “Despite our response to this fire and drawing on the many lessons learned from the Grenfell Tower fire, in many cases we are sadly still not seeing a culture change in all those responsible for fire safety in high rise buildings.
“The New Providence Wharf fire needs to be an urgent wake-up call to all building owners and managers. Look at the fire safety solutions inside your building and take action if they are not performing correctly. It is too late to wait for a fire to see if they work.”