'Another Grenfell waiting to happen' - Former council fire safety officer speaks out in wake of inquest

The former employee - who does not want to be named - worked as a fire and building safety officer, including looking after Bailie Court and Kennedy Court, off Stourbridge Ring Road.

He was off with mental health issues at the time of the death of Steven Harper, aged 62,  who was overcome with smoke in his fourth floor flat in Kennedy Court on May 16.  Mr Harper was taken to Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital where he was treated for burns and smoke inhalation but died the following evening.

An inquest held earlier this month concluded the cause of death was an inhalation injury caused by the fire, with smoking a contributory factor. 

But district coroner Joanne Lees said she would give West Midlands Fire Service and Dudley Telecare, who run the alert system in the flats until January 17 to provide further information about lessons learned before deciding whether to write a report to prevent future deaths.

The employee ,who left his role in October, claims only now is Dudley Council implementing measures listed in 'Golden Thread' reports, the first of which was published in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017.

He says there were faults in the telecare system, which didn't work in Mr Harper's flat and had been mistakingly reset as it went off the first time.

He said: "It wasn't until the smoke reached the lobby and the lift area that the telecare alert went off and was responded to. 

"I had written reports about the system not working properly and being monitored by estates assistants who were not fully trained in fire safety.

"Mr Harper was estimated to be in the flat for around an hour before the fire service was called and they responded quickly when alerted.

"He was disabled and had one leg and should not have been on the fourth floor but my report on this and other matters had been ignored to the point where I had to be signed off sick just before the fire.

"Only know that the coroners report has come out is Dudley Council acting on Golden Thread 2022, the latest report on fire safety which contains stringent guidelines for fire safety in high rise building - this was another Grenfell waiting to happen."

The coroner said it was unclear exactly when the fire started but said Mr Harper "Had likely been exposed to smoke within the flat for at least an hour, possibly longer, in an enclosed environment.”

The court was told Dudley Council had been served a notice of deficiency in February this year, but fire safety officer Melanie Grainger, of West Midlands Fire Service, said there were no deficiencies that could have played a part in the fatal fire.

Dudley Council's director of housing and communities Kathryn Jones told the inquest all issues in the enforcement notice had been addressed and the notice lifted.

She said all policies and procedures relating to fire safety were reviewed continually - “Not just because of this incident but because fire safety is continuously evolving as it should be.”

Mr Harper's daughter Sam said the family were not happy at the time it took for the alert system to alert firefighters, who she said reacted quickly and were looking at taking legal action against Dudley Council in the wake of the inquest and the coroner's finding.

Councillor Ian Bevan, Dudley Council's cabinet member for housing, said yesterday: “Our thoughts and condolences remain with the family and friends of Mr Harper following the tragic accident earlier this year.

“We accept the coroner’s findings and, although the Telecare system was not found to be a contributory factor, we are taking this opportunity to reflect upon whether any process improvements could be made in the future.”

West Midlands Fire have also been contacted for comment