The Anonymous Widower

Tower Block Safety

Years ago, we lived in one of the tower blocks in the Barbican.  At the time, they were some of the highest residential blocks in Europe and you can still see Cromwell, Lauderdale and Shakespeare Towers looming behind the City of London like three cricket stumps.

I am always nervous of fire, and we wouldn’t have moved in with our young family, if we weren’t satisfied that the blocks were safe. 

1. All of the balconies on the blocks connected up, so in an emergency, you could go all the way round the block to get away from the fire.
2. Each balcony had two escape staircases, that connected to the lobbies below your floor.
3. There was of course a protected stairwell to get down in an emergency.

It am not aware that there has not been a serious fire in any of these blocks, so other precautions must have worked as well.

So it would appear that well-designed tower blocks can work.  And talking to my children now, they all enjoyed the time spent living above the city.

But.

We have just had the tragedy in Camberwell.  Was that block built to the same standards as the Barbican?

July 7, 2009 - Posted by AnonW | News | Death, Fire