Fire and the Build Environment - Assignment Example

Name : xxxxxx Tutor : xxxxxxx Title : FIRE AND THE BUILD ENVIRONMENT Institution : xxxxxxx @2009 Fire and the Build Environment Introduction Fires in buildings have been of catastrophic effects whenever they emerge. A number of people have lost their lives with lots of properties being destroyed in various major building fires. Many of these fires erupt without any prior warning making it very hard to precisely state the cause of the fire. In assessing the catastrophe, fire experts are entrusted to establish the cause of the fire and later formulate safety measures that can help in preventing similar occurrences in the future. To ideally protect buildings from fire catastrophes, ‘various safety measures are put in place at the’ time of construction. A number of critics have however indicated that the failure to advocate for installation of various safety appliances in some buildings is to blame for a number of big fires. Over the last twenty five years, a number of building fires have been recorded in various buildings in the United Kingdom and around the globe. This paper examines building fires for the last twenty five years with regard to England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The ‘Bradford City Stadium Fire in England’ On the 11th of May 1985, the Bradford city stadium was reported to have been consumed by a terrible fire. This fire broke out when the home bound foot ball team was meeting the Lincoln city foot ball team in a match that was to sum up for the celebration of the win earned by the Bradford foot ball team in the League division Trophy. A large number of people escaped with severe in injuries with fifty six people succumbing to the fire. The fire is said to have emerged at about forty minutes in to the first half. At exactly five minutes prior to half time, a glowing light was spotted from the rear of the stadium in block G. One of the spectators is believed to have dropped a glowing splint or probably a burning cigarette that landed on to a heap of rubbish in the lower section of the stadium. Spectators seated in the upper sections of the stadium are said to have felt the surging of the heat beneath them. This is said to have prompted one of the spectators to dash for a fire extinguisher within the rear of the stand but to his dismay got none (Firth 2005). A nearby police officer went ahead to raise alarm for an extinguisher only for his call to be wrongly interpreted. The fire then spread very first forcing police officers on the watch to embark on the evacuation of the spectators. Various wooden stands and the roof of the stadium were first to catch the fire which according to an eye witness was rapidly spreading. Most of the spectators were covered in the thick choking smoke that made it very difficult for them to clearly see the exit and breathe. The game had to be terminated at about three minutes to half time (Firth 2005). The raging fire is said to have quickly consumed the roof that had been covered in tarpaulin and further sealed with both asphalt and bitumen. The fire is thought to have escalated owing ‘to the effects of the blowing wind’. The fire thus spread quickly from one stand to yet another. A number of spectators were severely burned by molten matter that fell from the burning roof. More injuries were reported exits that had been engulfed by a thick smoke reducing visibility. The whole stand was covered up in flames within a span of four minutes. The entire stadium did not have any installed fire extinguishers owing to the fear of being vandalized. Even a spectator who attempted to dash for one could not find his way back in time for having been blocked by the escaping crowd. Majority of the spectators were mixed up in the confusion trying to figure their way out through either the pitch or the back of the stand. The situation was complicated with the fact that almost all the exits at the back of the stand where majority of the spectators sought refuge had been locked with not a single steward assigned to them. Only seven among the many doors at the rear of the stand were forced open by the desperate crowd. Rescuers on the outside helped to open one of the exits while another exit was smashed down by a group of men from the inside. Most of those who got hurt or lost their lives are said to have been caught up in the stampede as the crowd tried to figure out an open exit. Most of those who luckily found their way out had a lot to thank the three men for having smashed open one of the closed exits. A number of other men are said to have committed themselves to the safety of the many children who had shown up for the match by throwing them over the wall of the stand in order to save them from being caught up by the flames. The fire at this stadium is said to have consumed fifty six lives with two out of those who perished being supporters of the Lincoln team with the rest being Bradford supporters. Three of the supporters who attempted to escape through the toilets are among those who lost their lives (Phil 2005). ‘A large number of those who perished’ were found at exit K that was evidently closed at the time of the inferno. A number of the elderly spectators who could not manage to run away from the flames to safer grounds were found dead in their seats with some who had attempted to crawl below the turnstiles having been terribly crashed. On arrival of the fire brigade team four minutes later, the stand had already been consumed beyond recognition such that they could not do any thing much. Most of the stand was completely destroyed in the flames including a number of vital properties (Phil 2005). On conducting an inquiry in to the inferno, the legislation regarding the safety in foot ball stadiums had to be amended. The use of wooden stands in all foot ball stadiums across the United Kingdom was prohibited. It was revealed in the inquiry that the management of the Bradford stadium had severally been warned regarding the heap of rubbish beneath the stand but had taken no prior action. Most of those who survived the incident indicated that the burning cigarette dumped by one of the spectators was boosted in to a big fire by the wooden nature of the stand. The management was reluctant to make repairs in the dilapidated stand on grounds of lack of adequate funds. The wooden stands in foot ball stadiums have been deemed as a major fire hazard and the impact of the inferno would never have been that severe had the stands not been made of wood. The response of the fire brigade team on this occasion was also not in time. To ideally prevent similar incidences in future, foot ball stadiums need to be ideally installed with fire extinguishers and made of ideal materials like bricks and not wood. Building Fires in Scotland On the 26th of November this year, a large fire was reported in Pecckham in the south East of London. This fire is said to have forced over a hundred and fifty people to vacate their homes as it engulfed various adjoining flats in Peckham. The fire according to reports by the London fire brigade was reported to have erupted moments before ‘half past four in the morning’. It covered several sections of the area approximated to be close to the size of a pitch. The evacuation of residents in adjoining flats was upheld on fears that the blaze was quickly spreading in to all the properties. A spokesman indicated that one of the buildings within the Carisbrooke Gardens was on alight moments before the fire started. This building is said to have been packed with lots of gas cylinders that probably caused the blaze. The building hosting the gas cylinders was reported to have been the epicenter of the fire that quickly spread to adjoining buildings (Wardrop 2009). Various scenes of the blaze on this occasion seemed to have impaired the efforts of the fire brigade team to put it out. This was such a terrible scene that had called for the collaboration of over a hundred and fifty fire fighters from various regions to help in rescue efforts. Thanks to the rescue team, the incident did not leave behind any casualties and calm was quickly restored among the residents. The intensity of the fire had called for the need to erect over thirty different fire pumps with rescue efforts being reinforced by the Metropolitan police. Several roads in the region had to be closed down as police officers embarked on the relocation of the evacuees to safer grounds. According to the local Member of Parliament, the residents of Peckham were terribly shocked by the raging blaze (Wardrop 2009). The intensity of the heat from the fire must have been very severe though rescue efforts ensured that not a single person lost a life in the inferno. Only one casualty who suffered breathing difficulties for having been engulfed in the smoke was taken to hospital for treatment. Not a single life threatening condition was reported in this particular inferno (Stothart 2009). Various residents sheltered at a distance from their properties as they watched the fire brigade team bring down the blaze. A number of roads in the region were rendered impassible owing to the many engines that had been erected along the roads. The local authority moved in to provide alternative accommodation for most of the evacuees whose houses had gone up in flames. The bursting flames from the top of the building hosting the gas cylinders attributed the incident to a gas leakage. This pointed to the need to install safety measures in gas distribution centers to guard against such incidences in the future. Though the cause of the fire cold not be stated with certainty, the gas cylinders are strongly to blame for the inferno. There is need to separate residential premises from fire hazards like gas distribution centers. Building fire in Northern Ireland On the 14th of November of this year, a fire was reported to have raged a section of the Union Theological College in Southern Belfast. The cause of the inferno was not ascertained with police officers at the scene treating it as a suspicion. Several rescue teams had been called to help put out the fire at this college. The fire is said to have suddenly erupted within the principal’s House; a section within the college. This section was currently under a very costly renovation at the time of the inferno. With the fire spreading rapidly, most of the entire building went in to flames within a very short span of time. Police officers handling the investigation are yet to state the precise cause of the fire in the college. Two among the many rescue officers who were handling the scene were terribly injured when molten metal fell on them from the burning premises. ‘The fire is said to have erupted’ at about half past two in the morning. The building ravaged in the fire was scheduled to have been opened ready for use as from the start of January 2010. Rescue officers managed to evacuate a total of twenty three students on the college premises alongside various residents in adjacent apartments. The incident according to the deputy clerk of the college was very devastating to members of the college and its close associates. After attending to the fire at around 2.30 am, yet another fire is said to have erupted within the same building moments after 0700 (The Irish Times 2009) . The rescue team had initially not taken away the fire fighting appliances from the scene and speculation pointed that the second fire might have been as a result of the circumstances of the previous fire. Owing to the renovation that was still under way, the officer in charge of the fire fighting team had to have the team removed from the premises for fear of an impeding roof fall. Luckily for this incident, there was not a life threatening causality that was reported. The rescue team managed to put out the fire just in time before it spread to other sections of the college. The building is among one of the major iconic structures that has been for ages used by various denominations for a number of functions. With regard to this incident, fire fighters on any particular incidence need to confirm that they have indeed put out a fire to prevent incidences of second fires that can be more devastating. It is also advisable for the fire fighters to be very careful or rather dress in appropriate in the event of fighting any fire to avoid any injuries. Building fire in Wales On the 19th of May 2008 the former Chester school was reported to have been destroyed in a raging fire. .This fire was reported to have stared on Monday ‘at around ten past four in the afternoon’. The fire which emerged in the higher sections of the Victorian building roof called for the need of over six fire engines to put it out. Rescue efforts managed to evacuate residents on the mason street who claimed that that had prior knowledge of the planed demolition of the school (Britton et al 2007). Most sections of Liverpool road had been rendered impassable as a number of rescue vehicles had packed along the entire way. This amounted in to heavy traffic congestion in the rush hour with train services being suspended as a result of the instability in the gable. Since the building had been perceived to be very precarious at the time of the inferno, the rescue team could not attempt to enter (Holmes 2008). Though the exact cause of the fire could not be stated, it its postulated that the fire could have been started by some homeless people who severally sought refuge in the building. Most of these people are known for starting fires whenever it’s cold to keep warm and this particular one might have got out of control. Most of the vagrants were spotted leaving the building on arrival of the rescue team. This is a fire that would thus have been controlled had the vagrants been able to raise alarm in good time. The precarious nature of the building is an aspect that greatly hindered the rescue process as none of the rescue team members attempted to enter the building. Though the cause of the fire could certainly not be stated, it is likely that it could have been caused by the vagrants on their normal warming occasions. These vagrants might have panicked and perhaps got confused on seeing the fire get out of control. The government needs to prohibit the use of open fires among the homeless society in order to discourage such incidents in the future. References BBC News 2009, Two Fire Fighters Injured at Belfast College, Viewed on 28th November 2009 . Britton, J, et al 2007, ‘The Beauties of England and Wales, Or, Delineations, Topographical, Historical, And Descriptive, Of Each’ County, Thomas Maiden, Michigan. Firth, P 2005, Four Minutes to Hell: The Story of the Bradford City Fire, Parrs Wood, Manchester. Holmes, D, 2008, Ancient Chester School Building Brought Down by a Fire. Viewed on 28th November 2009< http://www.chesterchronicle.co.uk/chester-news/local-chester-news/2008>. Stothart, C 2009, 200 Driven from Their Houses by A Peckham Fire, Housing Inside, Viewed on 28th November 2009 . Phil, S 2005, Bradford City: After the Fire, The Independent. The Irish Times.com 2009, Fire Destroys Most of Belfast College, Viewed on 28th November 2009. Wardrop, M 2009,150 People Vacate Their Homes As A Fire Rages Through Peckham. The Telegraph. Viewed on 28th Nov 2009 Read More