FOCUS
Fire Sector Summit The people who took the decision not to
have routine reviews of building regulations bear responsibility for the Grenfell deaths (and many others too). I wonder if they still think that their slashing of red tape was really worth it? Building regulations, like sprinklers, are not unnecessary burdens. They’re life savers. It’s a time to reflect in the fire services
too. Some fire chiefs have always campaigned for more and more fire safety, not least Peter Holland, who helped set up the national fire sprinkler network. Many leaders have been magnificent, and it’s marvellous that London’s fire chief Dany Cotton is now calling for sprinklers. ‘This can’t be optional,’ she said, ‘It can’t be a nice thing to have. This is something that must happen.’ But the service seems to have got more political in recent years. More and more obsequious. Its messages have been so nuanced, politicians happily interpreted them as ‘it’s all right Jack – there’s no need to act’. Where were the fire chiefs when building
regulations were allowed to slide? Where were the fire chiefs when fire safety inspection went to the lowest bidder? Where was the National Fire Chiefs Council on sprinklers – apart from their weasel phrase that sprinklers may have some use in an overall fire safety strategy? I hate to criticise the fire service. It’s been magnificent in so many respects. It’s rightly accepted cuts in fire stations and resources. It’s pushed hard for smoke detectors. It’s full of good people. But it needs to boldly go where politicians don’t want to go, and confront what politicians would prefer to shy away from. Incidentally, so do the water authorities.
They’re so wrapped up in their own regulations about dead legs in pipework that they’ve effectively stifled ultra low cost sprinklers which could be served by ordinary domestic plumbing. Shame on them for not trying harder and adopting this issue as their own. I’m reluctant to criticise politicians too. They get a bad press. Many are very decent; some are very intelligent. Most want to do what’s right. But they’re amateurs. That’s the British way. And they’ve been very badly advised on sprinklers in social housing. I hope the people in this room never let that bad advice go to ministers again.
And now the good news: a time to celebrate.
Out of each fire tragedy comes progress. As I say, the Fire of London, but more recently the Saffron Walden Hotel fire, the King’s Cross Fire, the Bradford Stadium disaster… and now Grenfell. We don’t take much notice when people die in ones and twos. We act when people die
in tens and hundreds. Belatedly, but we act. And as you may have seen, a BBC survey found that sprinkler installation companies are now struggling with demand. Hallelujah. They’re mostly going into high rise blocks –
but as we all know, we must go further. Almost all the people who die in domestic fire tragedies live in low rise. Some of you deal in other fire safety
measures – and good for you. I doubt that I’d want to campaign for sprinklers if I sold fire doors, for example. But there’s plenty to go round. PLEASE never, ever, talk down sprinklers. You all know the patter, and it’s true. Domestic sprinklers cost no more than fitted carpets. It’s almost impossible for them to be triggered accidentally, and when they do go off they only activate the heads which can put out the fire. And in 95% of cases, they put out the fire – before the fire and rescue service gets there. In 100% of cases where the system is enabled, they make the firefighter’s job much easier. And above all, noone dies from fire in a home protected by sprinklers. Grenfell has roused us from our complacency. England has woken up. Now we must catch up with Wales. And we must turn our anger at Grenfell to positive effect. And I wish you all high energy, determined
ambition, and crystal clear progress in tomorrow’s Summit
Nick Ross is a former broadcaster and international conference chairman. For more information, view page 5
34 DECEMBER 2017/JANUARY 2018
www.frmjournal.com
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