Council urged to check on fire safety for homes
Following the recent tragic events at the Grenfell tower in London, South Dublin County Council has been urged to take action to ensure that all housing stock – including multi-storey blocks owned, managed or otherwise used by the Council – are fully compliant with all fire safety regulations.
Councillor Charlie O’Connor said that he has received a number of enquiries from the Tallaght area and added that it was important that the Council would take account of such concerns.
He said that he had been particularly asked to check with the Council about the small size of windows in certain houses and to seek assurances that these windows comply with health and safety regulations.
Cllr O’Connor had raised similar issues at the July meeting of the Council and had been told that “All local authorities are currently conducting a fire safety review of their multi-storey social housing buildings.
“The review is concentrating specifically on common areas with a primary focus of ensuring that all early warning systems, including fire alarm and detection systems, emergency lighting and means of escape including corridors, stairways and emergency exits are in place and are fully functional.”
He was also told that “Multi-storey social housing buildings for the purpose of this review include local authority-owned stock, multi-storey housing buildings leased in full by local authorities, together with multi-storey housing buildings fully tenanted by social housing tenants under agreements with Approved Housing Bodies. In situations where local authority accommodation is provided within a privately owned, multi-storey development, the local authority is required to contact in writing the relevant management company.”
According to Cllr O’Connor, it is important that we continue to closely monitor these issues and he undertook to formally raise the issues again at the September meeting of the Council.
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