Local firm fined for fire safety breaches

The Big Rock Climbing Company which until recently owned and operated Climb Rochdale in School Lane has been fined for fire safety breaches

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The Big Rock Climbing Company, which until recently owned and operated Climb Rochdale in School Lane, has been fined £14,000 for offences involving the fire safety of staff and customers.

The company was fined £2000 on each of seven charges and also ordered to pay £1,858 in costs.

Climb Rochdale is now owned and operated by Pink Climbing Centre in association with Pink Adventures and has no links with the former owners.

The prosecution by the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority followed an inspection in January 2012 after a member of staff made an anonymous complaint reporting locked fire doors. A specialist fire protection officer visited and found a series of failings in the fire safety measures which meant that if a fire had occurred, staff and climbers could have been trapped inside the building.

All of the fire exits apart from the main entrance were locked or blocked and two of the fire exits couldn’t be opened even after staff unlocked them, as the doors were stuck in the frames. The escape route from the first floor was not safe as fire doors had been wedged open so had a fire occurred, smoke, heat and the fire itself could have quickly spread and trapped people upstairs.

Staff working in the climbing centre had not been trained on how to use and test the fire alarm or the emergency lighting. The fire alarm and emergency lighting had not been tested and some of the emergency lights did not work. This had been identified in a risk assessment that had been reviewed in April 2011 but nothing had been done to address it.

Cassie Williams, prosecuting for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, told the court: “All of doors out of the building were locked or blocked. Staff were not able to operate the fire alarm and when tested with the key, it didn't work. This was a busy place and early warning is vital to ensure people can get out.”

Colin Buckle, defending, told the court that the company and its directors took the matter seriously. He said: “The company has an excellent track record in fire safety but because of some failings have made mistakes. The directors have decided to give the centre away to a local business rather than selling off the equipment.”

Peter O’Reilly, GMFRS’ Director of Protection and Prevention services, said: “This company put its workers and customers at risk by failing to think about and act to ensure fire safety.

“The nature of the centre and the fact that people are actively climbing means that early warning of a fire is vital to ensure customers can get down from the wall and evacuate safely. However, not only was the alarm not maintained, the fire doors – which are emergency exits – were locked and could not be opened even when they were unlocked.

“It is fortunate that there was no fire as the risk of people not getting out of the building safely was unacceptable. I would urge all businesses to make sure they do a risk assessment and then act on the findings.”