Debate rages over safety of rebuilt Marston Way flats
By Gareth Davies
gareth.davies@essnmedia.co.uk
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BURNT TO THE GROUND: The Marston Way flats
A block of flats destroyed in a Christmas Day inferno has been rebuilt using the same material which a BBC report claims caused the flames to spread more quickly.
A dozen families were left homeless when fire ripped through flats in Marston Way, Upper Norwood, in December 2007.
The BBC report claimed the building's PVC plastic window frames, and a replacement façade for the building, also made of plastic, were to blame for the speed at which the flames spread.
Croydon Council, angered by the claim, says the official investigation into the fire did not blame PVC windows.
It argues that the material is "robust and durable", complies to all safety standards and was not a major cause of the spread of the fire.
The official report focused on timber framed cavity walls, which allowed the fire to spread through the cavity to reach the roof.
As a result all the new flats, which cost an estimated £1.25 million, have been fitted with insulated cavities.
Yet it would appear expert opinion is split on the risks posed by PVC - which is used in 90 per cent of council properties and has ben used for the rebuild.
The Advertiser consulted Keith Simmonds, a senior fire safety consultant, who said PVC window frames posed much more of a risk than wood during a fire.
He explained: "Timber has far more fire resistance than PVC, which is much easier to ignite.
"In my experience of how PVC behaves in a fire situation it melts in a very short space of time.
"Unlike wood, PVC does not need a large amount of heat to continue to burn.
"PVC is used because it is cheap and cheerful. But If a block of flats has a PVC door it has nowhere near the same amount of fire resistance [as a wooden door]."
The British Plastics Association Federation, however, believes that PVC does not pose a risk.
A spokesman said: "PVC is part based on chlorine which acts as a fire retardant. This means it is slow to ignite.
"Once the source of ignition is removed PVC stops burning whilst wood continues to burn."
A spokesman for Croydon Council agreed with this assessment.
He said: "PVC is a very robust, durable material and there is no legislation or official guideline to say that it should not be used in private or public buildings.
"The report into the cause of the fire did not highlight PVC windows as a major cause of the spread of the fire."
3 Comments
by Power Corrupts, Croydon
Sunday, December 20 2009, 9:00AM
“While it is correct that upvc windows and cladding went some way to help the fire spread, other factors were certainly responsible. The building was essentially a furnace waiting to ignite. The cavity walls had no capping and the roof space had no separation. When the flames melted the upvc trim it allowed the fire to spread around the building like a backdraft. Had these windows been capped it would not have spread. If you actually look at the BBC report, which is on YouTube under 'Marston Way Fire', you will hear the council admit that they had done NO Fire Risk Assessments, which are mandatory in law. Had these been carried out, it is without doubt that cavity protection would have been installed. Ultimately the building was a firetrap and Croydon Council are responsible. It comes as no surprise that they shirk responsibility; they are Dark Arts. After all, did any of those power corrupted individuals in Westminster have a crisis of conviction over their expenses fraud this summer? It is hardly likely, therefore, that there reprobate cousins in local government are likely to either.
When we hear Tony Blair spout religion and faith in the same monologue as his war mongering atrocity, politics on every level has reached its last bastion of common indecency.
Croydon Council why not make a statement that brings God into the fire? You may as well blame him/her for the fire and the fury!”
by Peter, Wallington
Saturday, December 19 2009, 11:23AM
“I have just re-read the article and realised that I missed the bit about the internal construction.
The two together were certainly responsible.”
by Peter, Wallington
Saturday, December 19 2009, 11:13AM
“Many will recall the fire at the block of flats in London (Camden?) where a number of people died in a fire.
Reports have suggested that it spread so quickly with such devastating results because the wooden framed windows had been replaced with UPVC ones. A previous fire there with the old windows was confined to just one flat.
My line of work involves, amongst other things, the construction of buildings and external cladding etc. Without seeing full details of the building I couldn't pass a professional comment, but any form of external cladding would greatly assist a fire in spreading to other parts of a building.
UPVC windows in single occupancy premises, ie houses, do not present a great problem, but multi-occupnacy, multi floors, ie flats would concern me. I also would not live in one of the new timber framed blocks of flats that seem to be springing up all over the place now.”