Work begins to remove tower block cladding
WORK STARTS AT TWO OF CITY’S TOWER BLOCKS
PREPARATORY work is under way to remove cladding from high-rise blocks on Riverside Dene and Cruddas Park House.
The blocks, which are managed by Your Homes Newcastle on behalf of Newcastle City Council, are some of the most prominent in the city.
During investigations carried out in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire, it was found that some of the panels on the buildings were not up to scratch.
While most of the cladding used was found to be safe, decorative panels on five high-rises did not meet standards to be installed on a building more than 18 metres high.
It is understood that the bulk of the work to remove the panels will happen tomorrow and Thursday.
Staff from Wates Living Space, the American contractors who installed the cladding, have been on site to assess what needs to be done.
Announcing the news last week, Tina Drury, managing director at Your Homes Newcastle, said: “None of our blocks have cladding made of aluminium composite material, which was on the Grenfell Tower.
“But to reassure tenants we decided to go above and beyond what was required of us and have core samples of the external fabric from blocks tested by an independent fire-testing organisation recommended by the Department for Communities and Local Government.
“I am pleased to say all of the samples did pass the fire test, however we are not resting there.
“We are turning our attention to other materials used on the blocks and those investigations continue.
“We discovered that decorative panels used on blocks at Riverside Dene should not have been used above 18 metres so we are removing them and will replace them with something else.
“Let me assure residents that this will happen with minimum disruption.”
In the aftermath of the tragedy, The Chronicle began fighting for better safety standards for North East high-rise residents through our What Price Life? campaign.
Cladding installed on the Grenfell Tower fire was immediately identified as a reason the fire was allowed to spread so quickly on June 14, killing around 80 people. A final death toll is yet to be established.
The Chronicle has demanded that all cladding on blocks in the North East is tested and removed where necessary.