Agenda item

The London Fire Brigade Borough Commander to be heard

The Group heard a verbal update from the London Fire Brigade Borough Commander.

The Borough Commander explained that since the last meeting the annual figures around fire issues had been recorded, with numbers generally low.  He explained however, that false alarms due to automatic fire alarms had risen by almost 200% of the target of around 800.  The Chairman asked if there was any feasible action that could be taken to address this issue.  The Borough Commander explained that first-time offenders could not practically be blamed, though repeated offenders were advised not to re-enable their auto-alarms without sufficient confidence that it was working correctly.  Those who do are invited to attend a PowerPoint presentation, and this initiative has had some success.

The Borough Commander explained that there had been two arson incidents, and 18 outdoor fires originating within bins/rubbish.  The Borough Commander explained that in many cases these incidents were insignificant and could be resolved relatively easily, in some cases through the application of a cup of water to extinguish flames or smoke.  The Chairman asked if there was any way that Project Griffin could be utilised to ensure proactivity in tackling such incidents.  The City Businesses representative explained that an issue worth noting was the limited access to locked premises.

The Borough Commander explained that there had been 556 home fire safety visits, with 532 of these resulting in a rating of “high risk”.  The Commissioner asked whether these visits were solely carried out by LFB, or if they were multi-agency.  The Borough Commander explained that coordinating an approach with other agencies would prove very challenging.  The Commissioner agreed, but noted that training could be shared between agencies/forces.  The Borough Commander explained that training for 6,000 staff would not be a straightforward undertaking.

The Chairman agreed that it was worth considering potential options, but accepted that the risks raised by the possibility of Police staff giving fire safety advice that was inaccurate for example would be significant.