Fire safety – what we’re doing to support you

Last year you may have heard about two separate fires that occurred at highrise blocks at Twinnell House and Eccleston House in Bristol. The causes of the fires are thought to have been accidental at Twinnell and suspected arson at Eccleston. These events have deeply affected us all.

Waking watches

These precautions involve:

1 introducing around-the-clock waking watches

2 removing or preparing to remove all EPS (expanded polystyrene) cladding from our blocks.

Waking watches involve fire marshals patrolling the buildings twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week. The marshals job is to provide early alert in the event of a fire and to help with any potential evacuation while any EPS cladding is still in place or being removed.

For those 38 blocks there is now a simultaneous evacuation policy, and so if there is a fire in a flat or anywhere in the block residents must leave. We have written to all residents in these blocks advising them of the change in evacuation policy and arranged drop in events to answer any questions or address concerns.

For the remaining 24 high rise blocks the evacuation policy remains get out/stay put. This means you must get out immediately if there is a fire in your flat, but crucially stay put if there is a fire anywhere else in the building.

Keeping escape routes clear

It is very important that corridors, stairs and other communal areas in high-rise blocks are kept clear of any items that might be an obstruction or a fire hazard.

The recent fires in high-rise blocks have demonstrated how important fire safety precautions, such as keeping escape routes clear, can be for the people living in high rise blocks.

Please do not be tempted to leave anything that could be a hazard for even the briefest time in the way of your escape route. We have a policy that allows us as your landlord to remove and dispose of anything left in corridors that is considered to be hazardous.

Please let us know, by phoning Estate Management on 0117 9222 200 (select option 4 or 5), if you see:

• any materials on the stairs, including mobility scooters or bikes

• anything which needs repairing, such as bannisters or tiles

• anything obstructing the final exit door.

Please remember that your hallway may form part of your escape route in the event of a fire. Please keep your exit routes clear and safe from hazards.

Avon fire safety home visits

We work closely with Avon Fire and Rescue Services to frequently review our approach to fire safety. The Fire Service provide advice and information through their home visit programme.

The home visits suggest simple changes that you can make to reduce the risk of fire happening in your home.

You can book a home visit by calling the Fire Service on 0117 926 2061 or at www.avonfire.gov.uk/ourservices/home-fire-safety-visits/home-fire-safety-visitrequest

Fire safety tips

Extra precautions before you go to bed

At night there are some simple steps you can take to protect your home from a potential fire:

• Close all internal doors to stop a fire from spreading.

• Turn off and unplug as many big electrical appliances as possible, unless they are designed to be left on like your fridge.

• Turn off and unplug other small appliances, such as chargers, washing machines and heaters.

Balcony safety

On your balcony:

• never BBQ

• do not use it as a fire pit

• do not store fireworks

• do not fix fairy lights, additional timber, combustible screening or flooring.

Flammable materials to be aware of in your home

• Do not use paraffin, or bottled gas heaters or appliances.

• Do not store petrol, diesel, oil, paraffin bottled gas or any other dangerous liquid or material.

• Do not store any appliance or machinery fuelled by the liquids above.

Keep fire doors closed (if your block has them)

Please do not prop open or block fire doors. When the doors are closed they stop the spread of fire.

Smoke alarms

All council homes should have a heat or smoke detector on each level. If you think yours is broken or missing please report it 0117 922 2200 or visit www.bristol.gov.uk/contact/citizen-service-point Avon Fire and Rescue Services have lots of useful fire safety tips to keep you safe. You can find more information at: www.avonfire.gov.uk/safety-advice/ fire-safety