SHOW US PROOF OUR HIGH-RISES ARE SAFE
Expert: Scots tenants deserve truth after horror of Grenfell
SCOTS families living in high-rise blocks must be shown proof that their homes are safe from fire, a leading safety expert says.
Professor Andrew Watterson believes tenants need reassurance after the horror of Grenfell Tower.
At least 80 people died at Grenfell after last month’s fire spread up the building with terrifying speed. Cladding fitted to the outside of the block has been widely blamed.
Scots housing chiefs say all cladding on their towers meets regulations. But it’s not clear how much extra testing they have done since Grenfell.
Campaigners are demanding additional checks.
Watterson said that if cladding and insulation materials hadn’t been tested – on their own, together and with a range of building materials – it should be done “as a matter of urgency”.
He added: “Some tenants or tenant bodies appear not to have been given all the details of testing.
“It’s important that all test results and protocols are made available to them to increase confidence and guarantee transparency.”
Watterson is director of the Centre for Public Health and Population Health Research.
A housing campaign group in Glasgow are also putting pressure on the authorities.
Billy McAllister of the North West Community Alliance said: “We have written to residents warning them of the potential dangers with the cladding, and the fact many buildings have no sprinklers.
“We are advising people to demand that their landlords send samples of the cladding to be fire-tested.
“The Scottish Government are also being lobbied to instruct all councils and housing associations to carry out fire risk tests on all cladded flats they own.
“It is not good enough to say, ‘We’ll wait on the Grenfell inquiry to report back. We can’t afford to take a chance.”
The Scottish Government said tests on cladding samples were ongoing.
No cladding like that used at Grenfell had been found on any council or housing association high-rises, and 30 of 32 councils had confirmed it wasn’t on any privately owned tower blocks in their areas.
A spokeswoman said the Grenfell cladding didn’t meet Scottish regulations for high-rise buildings.
But checks are under way after similar cladding was found on schools in 14 Scots council areas. And insulation used at Grenfell has been found on part of Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, although the health board insist it was correctly installed there and is safe.
Glasgow City Council have asked officials to check work done by insulation firm Everwarm after it emerged that police are investigating their parent company.
It’s claimed Lakehouse, who installed fire alarms at Grenfell, fitted defective safety equipment in hundreds of London properties. Bosses deny it. A HERO athlete who lost her hands and feet to blood poisoning four years ago finished her first triathlon yesterday.
Corinne Hutton, 47, of Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire, also had two thirds of a lung removed four months ago.
But she still completed the London Triathlon, the biggest race of its kind in the world, in one hour, 52 minutes and 22 seconds.
She said: “I’ve had a few setbacks during my training, so it’s been hard. But I loved the challenge.”
Corinne has also climbed Ben Nevis and learned to fly since losing her limbs, and has founded a charity, Finding Your Feet, to help amputees and people born without limbs.