Frequently asked questions following Grenfell Tower incident

Geoff Harris from Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: “There is no doubt in my mind that the horrific inferno that engulfed Grenfell Tower will provide a defining moment in relation to fire safety in high rise buildings across the UK. It will still be some time before we fully understand what has happened and identify any learning that emerges.

“In the meantime, fire safety advice from Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service remains that if you have a fire or become aware of a fire in your home which includes blocks of flats, you should get out, stay out and call us out. If you live in a block of flats where your landlord has advised you to ‘stay put’ in the event of a fire, this is their advice which they should have based on an individual fire risk assessment for that building.

"As a fire and rescue service, we don’t go into premises to validate risk assessments but as part of a rolling inspection program we will visit to assess the fire safety measures applied in that premises and review them. Where we find that a risk assessment is unsuitable we will take enforcement action.

“Andy Burnham the Mayor of Greater Manchester has established a high-rise task force which will be going across the whole of Greater Manchester, building by building, to provide fire safety reassurance. This task force is led by Salford City Mayor Paul Dennett and we are working closely with him, local councils and landlords to get us to a point where we can, as quickly as possible, assure all residents their homes are safe.

“If any resident is concerned about fire safety in their building or fire safety advice given they should contact us. We are committed to working with Housing Providers to support them in achieving the safest possible fire safety solutions in their buildings.”

Frequently asked questions

• Has the GMFRS policy changed following this incident?

 

No, the approach adopted by GMFRS, as outlined above, remains the same.

Why is there normally no common fire alarm throughout the building?
A common fire alarm system is designed to alert everyone within a building at the same time. Where a building is designed to support a ‘stay put’ approach the staircases aren’t generally wide enough to support a simultaneous evacuation of the entire building. Alarm systems in these types of buildings are generally to open smoke ventilation systems in order to keep the common areas free of smoke for people escaping and our own crews to gain access to fight a fire.

Each flat will have their own stand-alone detection and alarm, which should alert the occupants of the affected flat in the event of fire occurring within that flat. This alarm will not normally be linked to any other area of the block.

There are other areas such as undercover car parks which may have detection and alarm system but again will not normally be linked to any other part of the block. Any detectors within the common corridors or staircases are likely to be there to activate any ventilation system but will not be designed to sound a warning.

• What levels of fire resistance should be in between flats?

If correctly designed and maintained, individual flats should be separated from each other with materials that will resist fires for a minimum of 60 minutes. This should allow sufficient time for the occupants of the affected flat to escape without other flats and escape routes becoming affected. This should also allow sufficient time for the Fire and Rescue Service to extinguish the fire.

• Is the external cladding system safe?

There are numerous types of cladding systems available that provide rain screens and thermal insulation. If you are concerned about a systems installed on your premises you are advised to discuss with your housing provider who should be able to advise on the cladding systems that has been installed.

• Has the cladding system been approved?

Again, there are numerous types of cladding systems in use for rain screens and to provide thermal insulation to buildings. Your housing provider should be able to advise you on the type of cladding system used and the approvals process carried out by the relevant building control body.

Will the fire and rescue service have big enough ladders to be able to rescue me?The fire and rescue service carry different sizes of ladders and aerial ladder platforms to carry out rescues. The aerial ladder platforms can extend 30m from the ground (depending upon circumstances) and is effective in rescuing from higher floors.

Buildings should be designed so that the fire and rescue service can carry out rescues from within the building. In normal circumstances, during a fire within a flat communal corridors and staircases should smoke free allowing firefighters to carry out rescues from within the building.

• What happened at Grenfell Towers?

The cause of this fire is unknown at the moment and will be subject to an investigation. The investigation will determine origin, spread and fire development and any subsequent learning.

• What is a fire safety audit?

A Fire Safety audit – also known as a Fire Safety Compliance Inspection - is a visit made by a Fire Service Inspector for the purposes of checking whether a building complies with Fire Safety regulations and is fire safe.

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service may visit a premises and undertake a Fire Safety Compliance Inspection, usually prearranged. All fire safety inspectors will be in uniform and carry identification.

The fire safety audit is an examination of the premises and relevant documents to ascertain how the premises are being managed with regards to fire safety.

The emphasis is on the checking that duty holders can demonstrate how they are meeting their legal duties. In a workplace, the inspector may also wish to talk to members of staff to confirm their level of fire safety awareness.

Where applicable to the premises the inspector would expect to view documentary evidence - these documents can help demonstrate that a duty holder is fully complying with the law. Such documents include:

- The significant findings of the Fire Risk Assessment

- Records of Staff Training and Fire Drills

- Records of Testing and Maintenance of Fire-fighting Equipment

- Records of Testing and Maintenance for all Fire Safety Systems including Fire Alarms and Emergency Lighting

Where a failure to comply with fire safety legislation is found, the inspector will decide what action to take. The action will depend on the nature of the breach and will be based on the principles set out in the Authority’s published Fire Safety Regulation Policy and the Regulator’s Code.

• How many tower blocks across Greater Manchester have already had the cladding tested and how long before you are satisfied that all blocks have been examined?

In Greater Manchester we have approximately 470 high rise residential premises. DCLG have informed us of 61 premises that have either failed the Building Research Establishment (BRE) fire test or have Aluminium Composite Material cladding that needs a compliance inspection.

We have inspected all 61 plus an additional 10 whereby local authority building control or residents have raised concerns. We are also proactively carrying out further compliance inspections across high-rise premises, sequenced in line with risk profile.

We expect that we will be inspecting all our high rise residential premises for at least the next two months.

• How many buildings have been visited across Greater Manchester?

As of Tuesday, July 11, firefighters have completed 408 OIS (operational information system) visits. 382 were residential high rise and 26 in commercial properties. An operational information system visit is where crews will familiarise themselves with the building – its layout and emergency systems.

129 total compliance visits have taken place, with 50 further planned for this week (week starting July 10). A total compliance visit is undertaken by fire safety officers to ensure full compliance with the relevant regulations.

• Have Building Regs been applied across Greater Manchester in the same way or have you found any variation in the interpretation from one authority to another?

Unfortunately, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) cannot supply this information. GMFRS are not the enforcing authority with regard to Building Regulations.

Within Greater Manchester there is an Association of Greater Manchester Authorities Building Control Group which represents the Local Authority Building Controls across Greater Manchester. However the Building Control sector was opened up to wider competition and there are now private Approved Inspectors who can undertake the work.

How many tower blocks were not built with the fire breaks in place, as appears to have been the case in Grenfell thereby allowing the fire to travel up chimneys?

Unfortunately, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) cannot supply this information. As set out in the previous answer, GMFRS are not the enforcing authority with regard to Building Regulations.

• How many tower blocks have got failed cladding in terms of its fire resistance?

We have been informed of 61 premises that have either failed the Building Research Establishment (BRE) fire test or have Aluminium Composite Material cladding that requires a compliance inspection.

• How many tower blocks have used flammable materials, against regulations, above the 80-metre height restriction?

Within Building Regulations, 18m is the height at which additional measures are required.

The Building Regulations require that such systems, when installed on residential buildings over 18 metres high, should be of ‘limited combustibility’ and have a surface spread of flame classification of 0 (i.e. it shouldn’t support the spread of flame). These requirements are set out in ‘Approved Document B, Volume 2 – Buildings Other than Dwellinghouses’,

British Standard 8414 allows for the fire performance testing of external cladding systems. As stated above, the requirement of the building regulations is that such systems when fitted to residential buildings over 18m high, should be of limited combustibility.

We do not know how many blocks have what type of external facades as GMFRS are not the enforcing authority with regard to the Building Regulations.

• What steps are being taken to ensure that we have fire platforms in Greater Manchester which can reach higher floors than those available in London?

Prior to the fire at Grenfell Tower, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) had reviewed its existing aerial appliance provision. Currently GMFRS operate six aerial appliances, known as Hydraulic Platforms, which have a maximum working height of 27.8 metres.

Following an extensive review and procurement exercise an order has been placed for two new aerial appliances within this financial year, with a further two to be delivered in the following years. The new aerial appliances are known as Turntable Ladders (TL), with the initial two TLs having a maximum working height of 32m and 42m. Although the maximum working height has increased, the 42m TL would be able, in ideal conditions, to reach the 14th floor of a high rise premises.

Within the UK the 42m aerial appliances are the largest in service. Globally there are some countries that have bigger aerial appliances, mainly in an industrial setting, but it is unlikely they would be able to reach the 23rd storey and manoeuvrability in an urban environment is difficult due to the sheer size of the vehicles.

• What steps are being taken to ensure that all firefighters use the training facility in Bury, which has a tower block scenario, because clearly the numbers involved in the fire in London required team from across the capital and outside who may not have worked in this type of fire?

The service training facility at Bury is utilised by all operational firefighters across Greater Manchester, with the mandatory training is called operational licence training. GMFRS are one of the first services across the UK to launch an operational licence training.

The operational licence allows the service to design training based on significant local and national events. It has been recognised for many years that high-rise firefighting is complex and arduous, which is why a high rise facility was a key design requirement.

In addition to the training that is undertaken at the facility in Bury, local training is undertaken as part of a maintenance of skills programme that is overseen by the Station and Watch Managers at every station across Greater Manchester.

As well as this training, GMFRS has a system known as the Operational Information System, where local firefighters capture risk information about certain premises including high rise premises that allows firefighters to utilise information en-route or at an operational incident involving high rise premises. Following the tragic incident at Grenfell Tower local crews have been reviewing this information.

Finally, even though the number of high rise premises is more prevalent in Manchester and Salford, all other local authority areas across Greater Manchester have some high rise premises which local operational crews attend incidents at.