Fire Safety Task Force make recommendations

THE Fire Safety Task Force set up by the government in the wake of the Grenfall Tower tragedy in the UK have published a series of conclusions and recommendations for preventing a similar scale disaster here. The Task Force met from July 2017 to April 2018.

The findings of the report will be studied in detail by local authorities who have been advised to carry out a series of safety checks. For example, local authorities must identify all buildings of more than six storeys, or 18m in height. Assessment must also be carried out on all existing multi-storey and multi-unit social housing with particular emphasis on examining fire detection and alarm systems, emergency lighting systems, common escape routes, including corridors, stairways and emergency exits and to ensure that such systems are both in place and fully functional.

The report stated that Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Eoghan Murphy, acknowledged that local authorities have ‘responded fully’ to requests to review fire safety measures in their respective jurisdictions and have carried out inspections and necessary works within the requested timeframes.

“While the recommendations of this report cannot make society completely free from fire and its dangers, it does outline a roadmap for our efforts to reduce the probability of fire disasters over the next decade,” Minister Murphy said.