Should we stay or should we go? Residents of tower block tell of fire safety fears

Concerned: Pitcairn House residents. Photograph: Maya Sall. Free to use by partners of the BBC LDRS

The concerns of Pitcairn House residents’ over the suitability of their one evacuation route are being heightened by historical poor maintenance and repair works.

“We have so many leaks, and exposed wires coming through ceiling panels, it feels like a we’re playing the waiting game before a serious fire breaks out”, resident Zoe Goodman told the Citizen.

The Citizen has also seen evidence of broken smoke detectors in several flats of the 10-storey building and has spoken to residents who say they have reported the problem to the council repairs team.

“If there is a fire, the advice is to ‘stay put’. But what if you must escape the building, and then, the only stairwell we have is blocked by the fire – how are we going to get out?” said Feyzi Ismail.

She also pointed out that the stairwell only had one handrail and it was a squeeze for two people to stand side by side.

“It’s so narrow, and we have so many elderly residents in this block. What are they meant to do if there’s a fire and everyone is crowding the staircase and rushing down?”

“If there is a fire, there’s no way I’m ‘staying put’”, said another resident, who did not want to be named. “We saw with Grenfell that doesn’t work”.

One woman, due to give birth in two weeks, told the Citizen she has had “sleepless nights”, thinking about how she would evacuate the building in the event of a fire.

Residents say they have been in conversation with the council over the retrofitting of an additional staircase on either side of the building, however the council has not confirmed with them whether or not this will happen.

The Citizen put these questions and concerns to Hackney Council.

The Town Hall denies any record of residents reporting broken or damaged smoke alarms: “We have no record of any issues with smoke detectors being raised by residents. If any residents don’t have smoke detectors, they can contact the council’s repairs contact centre on 020 8356 3691 and we will arrange for one to be installed as soon as possible”.

Commenting on the residents’ call for a second staircase, a Hackney Council spokesperson told the Citizen: “Second staircases are not being considered for any existing buildings. This requirement only relates to new build developments over 18 metres high”.

Pitcairn House, which was built in 1963, is approximately 30 metres high.

When quizzed by the Citizen about when the latest fire risk assessment (FRA) of the building was conducted,  a Hackney Council spokesperson said it was carried out on 26 March 2024. The council said the FRA identifies the block as “moderate risk overall, with two medium-priority actions required”.

These are “upgrading and installing emergency lighting in the communal areas, and removing combustible items stored within these areas”.

When asked how often fire risk assessments are meant to be conducted at Pitcairn House, a council spokesperson responded: “The frequency of fire risk assessments is based on the perceived risk of each building across the portfolio within Hackney.

“For this property, the building will be risk assessed on an annual basis for fire safety concerns. The next fire risk assessment is scheduled for March 2025”.

The Citizen also put residents’ concerns about Pitcairn House “stay put” policy in the event of fire to Hackney Council.

The spokesperson replied: “The advice for each individual block of flats is based on the advice provided by the fire brigade. Annual inspections are also carried out on the communal front doors as required under the Fire Safety Regulations 2022.  The latest inspections at Pitcairn House were carried out on 19 June 2024.

“These inspections aim to ensure that flat entrance doors and communal fire doors have working self-closers and are maintained to prevent the escape of smoke and fire in case of an emergency.

Asked how residents who cannot “stay put” would escape if a blocked access to the stairwell, a Hackney Council spokesperson responded: “If a fire started on the staircase, the communal lobby doors would contain the fire for some time to allow the fire and rescue service to extinguish the fire”.

The Citizen also put Pitcairn House residents’ worries about the safety of the “stay put” strategy in light of the Grenfell disaster to the Council, as the west London tower block had the same.

“Pitcairn House is a different style of building to Grenfell and does not have the same cladding on its exterior”, the Hackney Council spokesperson said.

“People should only evacuate the building if they are told to do so by the fire brigade or it will hamper their work to rescue vulnerable people and extinguish the fire,” he continued.

The Citizen also put Pitcairn House residents’ concerns about “staying put” to the London Fire Bridge (LFB).

The LFB said “Stay put is not a London Fire Brigade or fire and rescue service policy or procedure. It is a building design and construction strategy which is applicable nationally”.

It explained: “If a fire breaks out in another part of your building and you are not affected by fire, heat or smoke our advice is that it is generally safer to stay within your flat unless conditions change.

“If you leave your flat you could be rushing into dangerous smoke, the fire itself or firefighters using equipment to bring the fire under control in another part of the building”, they added.

“Blocks of flats which have a “stay put” strategy are designed to contain fire in its compartment of origin to allow enough time for the fire service to extinguish it before it has a chance to spread”.