Australia’s construction crisis spreads to Brisbane:
How thousands of buildings in the Queensland capital are at risk of turning into towering infernos because of ‘shoddy workmanship’ • New report uncovered 3227 defects in 212 apartment buildings across Australia • Alarming number of fire-protection defects were identified as the most common • Defects found in 71 per cent of inspected buildings in…
Read MoreGovernments failed to act on warnings of combustible cladding dangers
State, territory and federal governments failed to limit the use of combustible cladding of the type on Melbourne’s Lacrosse and London’s Grenfell towers, despite repeated warnings from fire authorities as early as 2010. The concerns of ACT fire authorities and their NSW counterparts were discussed at meetings of state and territory building regulators and the…
Read MoreGold Coast Fire and Emergency Services warn increase in house fires during winter
WINTER has arrived with a vengeance and with it has come increased fire risks and warnings about the dangers of electric blankets and heaters. Superintendent Greg Tomlinson, Gold Coast zone commander for Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, warned there was an increase in house fires during colder months. He said this coincided with electric blankets…
Read MoreSydney high-rise evacuated amid fears building could collapse
A high-rise apartment block in the Sydney suburb of Mascot has been evacuated after residents reported the building started to move. Up to 100 apartments were evacuated by NSW Fire and Rescue who attended the Bourke Street building just after 6pm this evening. “We evacuated as a precaution, after movement was detected over a couple…
Read More‘This building has no sprinklers’: Grenfell United’s 12-storey-high guerrilla messages
Group beams huge projections on high-rises to highlight fire safety crisis Tower blocks across England have been lit up in a series of guerrilla projections highlighting a national fire safety crisis that appears to be getting worse rather than better on the eve of the second anniversary of the Grenfell disaster. As night fell on…
Read MoreMascot Towers unit owners to foot bill for repairs prompting calls for better consumer protections
Owners of apartments in the Mascot Towers development will be left with a hefty bill to repair structural damage as the building is too old to fall under warranty, with property experts calling for better consumer protections. Key points: • Residents were evacuated from the building on Friday night after a “rapid deterioration” of cracks…
Read MorePost-Grenfell anxiety for insurers, regulators and building owners continues
Some insurance companies worldwide have stopped insuring tower blocks clad with the same sort of materials that led to the rapid spread of the fire in London’s Grenfell Tower that killed 72 people. Building regulations are also struggling to catch up with effective regulation and monitoring. Fire engulfed all four sides of Grenfell Tower in…
Read MoreCharges laid after Wandal home destroyed by suspicious fire
ONE week after a Wandal home was gutted by a suspicious fire, police have charged a man. The 26-year-old has been charged with arson and fraud after police and emergency services were called to a Naughton St home shortly before 4pm last Tuesday. The owners of the home were left with next-to-nothing after the home…
Read MoreBalcony barbecue believed to have sparked devastating Gold Coast house fire
A Gold Coast home has been destroyed by a massive fire started by a barbecue that reportedly caught alight on the balcony. A balcony barbecue is believed to have started a fire that destroyed a Gold Coast home. The residents of the Reedy Creek home, a mum and her two kids, managed to escape and…
Read MoreGrowing crisis for Building Certification
30 May 2019 The ongoing cladding problem brought on by building fires around the world, particularly London’s Grenfell and in Australia, Melbourne’s Lacrosse has highlighted the risk to insurers in the professional indemnity (PI) policies they carry. As a result, building certifiers everywhere are facing challenges when it comes time to renew their policies. Certifiers…
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