EPF building fire: Did the Grenfell tragedy

nearly happen here?

KALBANA PERIMBANAYAGAM and MOHD HASBI SIDEK,New Straits Times 18 hours ago

PETALING JAYA: Did Malaysia very nearly have its own Grenfell Tower tragedy? Just how many buildings
are there in the country which use polyethylene, or polyfoam, as cladding? These are just some of the
questions in the aftermath of the blaze at the Employees Provident Fund building in Jalan Gasing here as the
authorities revealed that a spark from renovation work caused the polyethylene cladding to catch fire. Fire
and Rescue Department deputy director-general (operations) Datuk Soiman Jahid said the polye thylene
cladding was similar to the one used on the exterior of Grenfell Tower in London.

“The cladding that was used is made of material that is highly-flammable... It is made of polyethylene
(polyfoam), which can easily catch fire. “It should not be used in any building, let alone a government agency
building,” he said yesterday. He said such materials, though previously allowed, was no longer considered
safe. Grenfell Tower is a high-rise block of public housing flats in North Kensington, London. In the early
hours of the morning of June 14 last year, a fire broke out, killing 71 people, including many children, one
stillborn baby, and at injured least 70 people. A refrigerator in a unit on the fourth floor of the building caught
fire, but was quickly put out by firefighters who responded to an emergency call. However, as the firefighters
were leaving, they noticed that the fire had spread to the cladding on the exterior of the flats and was
spreading quickly. The fire burned for 60 hours before being extinguished, with newspaper reports crediting
the block’s Muslim residents for
the fact that the death toll was lower than what it could have been. As the fire took place during Ramadan,
Muslim residents were awake for
sahur and alerted their neighbours, saving more than 220 people. An inquiry soon followed, with evidence
pointing to the cladding being the cause of the fire spreading rapidly. An independent review of building
regulations and fire safety is in progress in the United Kingdom. ‘FIRE CAUSED BY SPARK THAT IGNITED
CLADDING’ FIRE badly damaged the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) building in Jalan Gasing yesterday.
However, most of the damage from the blaze, which was believed to have started about 11.50am, was to the
exterior of the building. Only a small portion of the interior of the six -storey building was damaged. The Fire
and Rescue Department and police confirmed that all 527 employees and their clients made it out of the
building safely, with no injuries reported.
EPF building fire - The fire burned for 60 hours before being extinguished, with newspaper reports crediting
the block’s Muslim residents for the fact that the death toll was lower than what it could have been.
It is understood that the fire may have started on the first floor at the back of the building, where renovation
was being conducted. Fire and Rescue Department deputy director -general (operations) Datuk Soiman Jahid
said a spark from the work was believed to have set alight the cladding on the exterior of the building. He said
the cladding was made of a highly flammable material, which was not recommended for use in construction.
He said as the fire was limited to the exterior of the building, no important documents were dam aged or
destroyed in the blaze. He said there were some damaged documents on the top floor of the building, but
they were not important. “We were told that the affected part on the top floor did involve some files and
documents, but they weren’t that important. Other than that, the damage is mostly on the exterior of the
building. “The fire was brought under control by firefighters before it could spread into the office space and
building,” he said. He said the hot weather could have caused the fire to spre ad quickly. Deputy district police
chief Superintendent Ku Mashariman Ku Mahmood said people in the building, including members of the
public, were safely evacuated to the public assembly area within the compound. About 70 firefighters were
deployed from several stations in the district as soon as the Fire and Rescue Department received a distress
call at 11.52am. At least four fire engines and two turntable ladder engines were used in the operation.
Firefighters took about an hour to completely douse the f lames. The fire, as well as the thick smoke, could be
seen from several kilometres away. The scene brought traffic to a standstill along the Federal Highway, Jalan
Gasing and Jalan Universiti. Peripheral roads leading to the area and the Federal Highway we re also
affected. © New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd