Bolton fire – Boris Johnson visits University of Bolton halls blaze as pressure mounts over cladding concerns
BORIS Johnson has visited students evacuated from Bolton University halls after a huge blaze broke out – as pressure mounts over cladding on the building. Horrified eyewitnesses said the flames “crawled up the cladding like it was nothing” after the inferno erupted at around 8.30pm yesterday. Dramatic pictures posted on social media show firefighters tackling […]
BORIS Johnson has visited students evacuated from Bolton University halls after a huge blaze broke out – as pressure mounts over cladding on the building.
Horrified eyewitnesses said the flames “crawled up the cladding like it was nothing” after the inferno erupted at around 8.30pm yesterday.
Dramatic pictures posted on social media show firefighters tackling flames shooting out of the windows of the building on Bradshawgate.
Two people were treated by paramedics at the scene with around 200 firefighters tackling the fire after it reached all six floors of The Cube halls of residence.
Students were evacuated and asked to go to nearby halls to contact their loved ones and let them know they were “safe”.
A police probe has now been launched to establish how the fire started – with all residents accounted for.
Boris Johnson visited staff and students at the university – as Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham called on him to give families living in tower blocks with cladding “peace of mind”.
He also viewed donations of food, emergency supplies and phone chargers given to the students.
Boris Johnson is today visiting students and staff following the blaze
Some witnesses have claimed Grenfell-style cladding was responsible for the ferocity of the blaze.
The fire brigade has confirmed the building did have cladding but not the same type on the doomed tower block where 72 people died in 2017.
Mr Burnham told Sky News: “It does not have the ACM cladding which is now banned, but it does have a type of cladding which does cause concern.
“There will be many people living in buildings with this cladding today who will be very worried.”
The Fire Brigades Union has now called for a complete overhaul of UK fire safety after the flames spread “extremely rapidly” through the building.
CLADDING FEARS
Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said: “This terrible fire highlights the complete failure of the UK’s fire safety system.
“It’s deeply troubling to see fire spread rapidly up a building’s exterior again – a shocking indictment of the government’s shameful inaction after Grenfell. This is not how any building should react to a fire in the 21st century, let alone a building in which people live.
“We need to end the deregulation agenda and the disastrous cuts to our fire and rescue service. It’s time for a complete overhaul of UK fire safety before it’s too late.”
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service firefighters are still working to extinguish the final pockets of the blaze but it is now under control.
ALARMS ‘DIDN’T GO OFF’
One woman posted on Twitter claiming the alarms didn’t sound in some of the flats.
A student said: “The fire alarms in our rooms didn’t even go off!
“It took banging on people’s doors and screaming ‘it’s a real fire’ to get everyone out.
“My whole life is in that room and not knowing what possessions I still have is horrible.”
Hero bar workers at Cocktails and Co helped a student to find emergency medication after she left hers in the burning building.
Ellie Cornish forgot to pick up her medication, which prevents seizures caused by PTSD, when she was evacuated.
She said: “Seeing my panicked and upset state, she offered to call 111 for me to get an emergency prescription.
“I was worried about my medication as I was in a heightened state of stress and that can cause seizures for me.”
Ace Love, 35, added: “The fire kept getting more intense, climbing up and to the right because the wind was blowing so hard.
“We could see it bubbling from the outside and then being engulfed from the outside.
“A lot of students got out very fast, someone was very distressed, the rest were on phones calling for help.
‘THEY WERE IN SHOCK’
“The fire got worse and worse, to the point where you could see through the beams, it was just bare frame.
”When we stepped out we could see the embers in the sky. We could see the building glowing at the top.”
He said he didn’t see any casualties although a number of students were ‘crying on their phones’.
“It was pretty awful,” he said, adding: “They were just in shock.”
The University of Bolton has confirmed students will be given temporary alternative accommodation and food and toiletries will be provided.
Urban Student Life, who own the building, said insurance companies have been notified after the fire broke out on the fourth floor before spreading to the sixth.
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The lower floors have “considerable water damage” – with the rear block damaged by the fire.
A statement added: “All students from the Cube and the surrounding areas affected have be given alternative hotel accommodation and emergency supplies.
“The insurance companies who are connected to both the building and student possessions have been alerted and will be mobilised to offer guidance.
“For any urgent enquiries we have a contact e mail address – enquiries@urbanstudentlife.com”.
