London Fire Brigade (LFB) has released its much-anticipated fire enforcement outcome regarding a fire that broke out in New Providence Wharf on 7 May 2021. It concluded that its investigators “were unable to identify that any offences had been committed” under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRO).
The 2021 fire at the east London apartment building began in a flat located on the 8th floor that spread externally upwards via the balconies to the 9th, 10th, and 11th floors. While there were no fatalities, two people were taken to hospital and 37 others were treated at the scene. 100 firefighters spent approximately 3 hours tackling the blaze, and the incident escalated to a 20-pump fire as crews initiated a mass evacuation of the premises.
In its preliminary report, LFB outlined “serious failures” with the smoke detectors in the communal corridor of the 8th floor that failed to operate both the Automatic Opening Vent (AOV) and the cross-corridor fire doors. While the build was partially covered in Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding and was “pending remediation work”, it was understood that this was not the cause of the fire spread. Mitigation measures had already been introduced by the building manager including a 24/7 ‘waking watch’ and a ‘simultaneous evacuation’ strategy.
In a performance review published in June 2022, LFB remarked on the considerable challenges that crews faced:
“All internal communal areas on the 8th floor were damaged by smoke, with fire and heat damage affecting the communal corridor around the entrance to the flat of origin. This was exacerbated due to the failure of the AOV. This allowed smoke and the products of combustion to flow through the common parts of the 8th floor (and subsequently beyond) making it difficult for persons on this floor to escape safely, while increasing the challenges and risks for firefighting and search and rescue operations within the building.”
London Fire Brigade’s Deputy Commissioner at the time, Richard Mills, noted: "The smoke ventilation system inside New Providence Wharf acted like a broken chimney, leading to a potentially life-threatening situation. Had it not been for the exceptional actions of our firefighters and 999 control officers this could have had tragic consequences.
In this recently released enforcement outcome, published on 14 January 2023, LFB stated that its follow-up investigation focused on why the building’s fire alarm and AOV systems did not operate properly at the time. However, it concluded that there was insufficient evidence in which to bring any prosecutions relating to the fire:
“We have committed significant resources into the investigation of the fire and the building’s compliance with fire safety laws. Following our extensive investigation, we found that there was insufficient evidence to pass the evidential test required to bring any prosecutions relating to the fire at New Providence Wharf in May 2021.
“As an enforcing authority, we must abide by The Code for Crown Prosecutors, which ensures any prosecutions we bring are fair and proportionate. In this case, after investing significant time and resource to exhaust all lines of inquiry, we were unable to identify that any offences had been committed under the RRO that would pass the necessary evidential test.”
In response, the Building Safety Register called the long-awaited report from the LFB “underwhelming”.
However, the LFB also added: “This outcome will understandably be a source of disappointment to the local community who have been greatly impacted by the fire, but it reflects the legal framework that the Brigade operates within.”