Fire exercise to boost tower block's safety

The fire safety exercise at Fitzleet House will be the one of the largest held in the town.

It will see everyone who lives in the 15-storey tower block on Queensway leave their flats on the evening of August 17.

Some 40 firefighters will be involved in testing firefighting procedures at the building for about an hour.

The exercise has been planned for months but it has been given extra relevance by last month's fire in Camberwell in South London in a 12-storey block of flats which left six people dead.

Ian Paine, a watch manager at Bognor Regis fire station, said: "Fitzleet House is a unique property because it only has one stairwell up the middle. Because of that, this exercise is very important to us.

"We want to make sure we have got our procedures right. It's very important to see how they go."

Fitzleet House was built in 1960 as part of a widespread redevelopment of the eastern part of Bognor town centre. It consists of 74 flats. Fifteen of them are in a three-storey block next to the main building.

Watch manager Paine said West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service had been working with the building's letting agent, Bognor-based Parsons Son and Basley, for the past 18 months to improve its fire safety.

This work has involved fitting a communal fire alarm system, improvements to fire doors and a new lift.

"The agents have done everything we have asked them to," he explained, "Large elements of risk from fire to the occupants and firefighters have been greatly reduced."

Alongside these improvements, the fire and rescue service has updated its procedures to deal with a blaze in the tower block.

This practise to take account of the single stairwell is for all the residents to be evacuated before the fire crews enter the building.

Everything in the exercise will be authentic up to the moment when the firefighters turn on their hoses. Six fire engines and specialist appliances will be used.

As well as Bognor fire station, they will come from Petworth, Arundel, Chichester, Worthing and Littlehampton. Senior fire officers will be present.

Queensway will stay open to traffic during the exercise. Other fire stations will provide cover to those supplying crews and equipment.

nWatch manager Ian Paine said some building owners were still unaware of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. This passed the responsibility for fire safety to the owners and operators of buildings.

They are personally and criminally liable for fire safety and have a duty of care to conform with the requirements.

Advice on fire safety can be obtained from the fire and rescue service's Arun district fire safety office on 01243 753747.

What do you think? Click here to send a letter to [email protected] or leave a comment below.

Click here to go back to Chichester news

Click here to go back to Bognor Regis news

Click here to go back to Midhurst and Petworth news

To tell us where in the world you are reading this story click on the link below to add yourself to our readers' map.

MAP