Thread by @SteveMcfirerisk

@sloumarsh @denis_campbell @guardian @Robert_Booth

Following @KingsCritCare closure due to fire safety concerns

wider UK Healthcare fire cases THREAD
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failures by @NHSuk @DHSCgovuk to assure safety following five london hospital fires & post #grenfell

theguardian.com/society/2020/j…

Major life loss events to fire in health care premisses are rare but not unknown.

However during 2008/2009 the sector was rocked by the five London hospital fires + one more during this pan-london post incidence report

preventionweb.net/files/13954_re…

In 2010 health sector was hit with austerity cuts from which NHS has never truly recovered

Estates & safety budgets were decimated.

Compounding issues faced by under resourced fire safety managers.

However, what happend in new Hospitals accross the country was criminal

Now if we fast forward in time & some grim reports hit the headlines

Reports of #Hospitals hit with staggering #firesafety deficencies.

Note to Ed’s Due to legacy NDAs can only talk freely about those projects I’ve not acted on or in the public interest

peterboroughtoday.co.uk/health/exclusi…

Fire safety faults noted 2014 in the new PFI Hospital

@cambsfrs served enforcement notice 2016

Works completed 2018

Q why were such fire deficiencies found after occupation to the extent it took four years to remediate?

peterboroughtoday.co.uk/health/peterbo…

Fast forward #grenfell & a slew of hospital fire safety issues emerged

Monday’s @mhclg draft #buildingsafetybill is limited to residential buildings over 18m

#NHS #healthTechnicalMemoranda #FireCode is maintained by @DHSCgovuk

Where is the interdepartmental integration?

16days following #grenfell 3 hospitals were found to have combustible cladding.

London's King's College Hospital,

Sheffield's children's hospital

North Middlesex Trust

Hence potential guidance failures in #residental @mhclg & #NHS @DHSCgovuk?

bbc.com/news/health-40…

Adding Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital - combustible cladding on a high rise #hospital!

bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-no…

The issues in two new Scottish #Hospitals were so bad that it triggered a Punlic inquiry.

constructionnews.co.uk/buildings/scot…

Health chiefs in Scotland have published full details of their £73m legal claim against Multiplex over alleged building faults at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University campus.

Problems have plagued the £842m super hospital since its opening in 2015.

constructionenquirer.com/2020/02/26/hea…

This report is deeply concerning and again oppeetunity to install 24/7/365 automatic fire suppression was cut from the project.

glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/15462199.…

Will the next #grenfell be in the NHS?

As NHS campaign groups along with the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) warned over fire safety in British hospitals, pointing to a staggering £5 billion maintenance backlog across the service.

morningstaronline.co.uk/a-12f4-will-ne…

Coventry £380m PFI hospital which opened 14 years ago may have been constructed without adequate fire protection, a safety review has revealed.

bbc.com/news/uk-englan…

NHS trusts including those in Kent and Nottingham have been stung into urgent action with further problems identified at Walsall Manor Hospital and the Royal Derby.

Medway Maritime Hospital was put into special measures in July 2013

Had no fire drills for up to three years, @BBCNews discovered.
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Building works at Medway could have compromised integrity fire resistant walls, @kentfirerescue found.

bbc.com/news/uk-englan…

Several NHS hospitals, including the flagship £545m Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, are at serious risk of fire due to inadequate or even non-existent passive fire protection.

theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/nhs-…

As reported by @constructionindex 👆

..shoddy fire protection at these PFI hospitals, contractors been hit by the ‘unavailability’ clauses in contracts which means that if building is found to be unfit for purpose, client can stop paying the rent until it’s put right.

Three other PFI hospitals are also having emergency fire-proofing, including Royal Derby, Walsall Manor in the West Midlands, and King’s Mill in Mansfield, Notts.

More worrying is a suspected arson attack at another Derby Hospital in 2019

derbytelegraph.co.uk/burton/fire-ho…

Although rare in the UK, there has been a spate of hospital fire deaths around the globe

+ now add the complexities of #covid19 to firefighting and hospital evacuation = a lethal combination.

bbc.com/news/world-eur…

South Korea - Miryang 2018 hospital fire is the nightmare scenario

Fire started in the A&E dept at 07:30 approx & quickly spread killing 41 + injuring more than 70

Around 200 people were thought to have been in the hospital, including 100 patients.

independent.co.uk/news/world/asi…

From the most recent fire incident data produced by @ukhomeoffice

Majority of fires occur in the home but over 2100 occur in hospitals

As ex chair @Nahfo_UK london I question why @gocuk builds hospitals over 11m & new hospitals without #firesuppression

gov.uk/government/sta…

When you look at @govuk statistics on where fires occur per 1,000 building

A) we have a red flag danger in Hospital buildings over 30m
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B) amber alert conditions in hospitals 11-30m

So why continue with existing high-rise hospitals or build new ones & combustible clad?

Main argument which comes back from @govuk & lobbying groups trying to put profit over people is Hospital fire incidents is low + fatality or casualty stats is less than 1% (n=15) between 2012-2018

The key argument against fire suppression - are wide ranging cost driven excuses

Every fire death is tragic but when it happens in a Health care facility or following disscharge into the commuity its apaulling when #firesuppression technology is available to protect the most vulnerable.

bbc.com/news/uk-englan…

If we keep cutting budget or inadequate resource fire safety managers & clinical staff - fire fatality incidents will be come all the more horrific

One of the worst cases international is this one from Romania.

independent.co.uk/news/health/ro…

UK history of hospital fires has given many tragic warnings

Its unacceptable to have highrise hospitals over 11, 18 or 30m Or Not to install #firesuppression where appropriate

shropshirestar.com/news/nostalgia…

Fires in mental health facilities are more frequent than many in the sector are comfortable with

walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-new…

@alexander_minh Dr Minh Alexander was a psychiatrist and whistleblower

Complied this warts & expose of fire risks in hospitals & mental health units.

Stunning even this fire expert who is aware of the extent of the issues but how much worse can it get?

opendemocracy.net/en/ournhs/expo…

@alexander_minh drives home the issues in hospitals

Having worked accross healthcare & following #grenfell returned to social & private housing - how many revolving door mental health patients are returned to community care with inadequate fire or other safeguards?

Effectiveness of #firesuppression is well documented and is but one of many fire risk reduction tools available.

So why is @GOVUK @mhclg @DHSCgovuk reluctant to mandate in all new builds & provide incentives in existing buildings across the board.

nationalfirechiefs.org.uk/write/MediaUpl…

Newer personal protection (fire suppression) systems have evolved.

Plug & play self contained units to help protect many dissabled & vulnerable persons when discharged to commuity care & help transition support needs.



plumis.co.uk/personalprotec…

@BRE_Group in partnership with @LondonFire have published a report on personal protection water mist systems.

So NHS & Mental Health teams + LA social services & housing providers & others would do well to adopt the safety tech

bre.co.uk/filelibrary/Fi…

london-fire.gov.uk/safety/carers-…

Report by @NFCC_FireChiefs on #firesuppression again confirms what many in the sector have realised, systems are a cost effective & reliable way to

Protect life
Protect property
Protect environment
Protect service continuity

But most of all prevent horrific injury or death

@fire_scot New statistics reveal that over the last five years 61 per cent of all accidental dwelling fire fatalities were people aged 60 and over.
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More than a third of accidental dwelling fire casualties (38 per cent) were also people aged 60 and over.

Despite @Nahfo_UK fire professionals & NHS clinical staff working hard to protect & heal society.

@GOVUK must mandate #firesuppression in hospitals or homes + effectively enforce building, fire & safety standards.

Holding PFI consortiums, designers and contractors to account!