‘Lessons of Grenfell not learnt...’
LESSONS from the Grenfell disaster have not been learnt, a fire union chief warned last night.
Matt Wrack spoke after another fast-spreading blaze at a block of student flats with exterior cladding.
The Fire Brigades Union general secretary said: “This terrible fire highlights the complete failure of the UK’S fire safety system.
“It’s deeply troubling to see fire spread rapidly up a building’s exterior again – a shocking indictment of the Government’s shameful inaction after Grenfell. This is not how any building should react to a fire in the 21st century. It’s time for an overhaul of UK fire safety before it’s too late.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday visited students from the
University of Bolton who were evacuated from The Cube building on Friday night.
More than 40 fire crews attended the blaze, which saw one person rescued and two people treated at the scene for minor injuries.
The FBU called for a review of safety rules after the fire spread “extremely rapidly” to the building’s upper floors.
The union said Greater Manchester had lost more than 600 firefighters since 2010 and claimed Andy Burnham, the Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester, was “trying to cut another six fire engines, including one in Bolton”.
Mr Burnham yesterday said concerns over the cladding had to be addressed.
He said: “We will be looking to work with him [Boris Johnson] to see if we need to go further to remove cladding from these buildings and give families peace of mind.”
The criticism came as it emerged around 17,000 households are still living in privately owned flats or apartment blocks with similar cladding to the Grenfell tower, despite a government scheme to make them safe.
An investigation into the blaze is ongoing but Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service last night confirmed The Cube did not have the same type of cladding that combusted at Grenfell Tower in 2017, claiming 72 lives.
Campaign group Grenfell United yesterday tweeted: “We can’t believe that over two-and-a-half years later this is happening. [People] must feel safe in their homes. When will this be treated as a national emergency?”