INNOVATION May-June 2018

L E T T E R S

Letters to the editor containing your views on topics of interest are encouraged. Opinions expressed in letters are not necessarily endorsed by Engineers and Geoscientists BC. Letters should be 300 words or less and can be emailed to innovation@ egbc.ca. Find more information at egbc.ca/Submitting-to-Innovation.

CORRECTION The article “Learn in the North. Stay in the North” ( Innovation , March/April 2018) misstated the number of undergraduate engineering degree programs offered at UBC’s Okanagan campus. There are three: civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering. Smart. Choice.

A REQUEST FOR MORE COVERAGE OF GRENFELL TOWER FIRE I read with interest the article “Questions From the Grenfell Tower Fire: Could It Happen in BC?” in the January/February 2018 issue of Innovation. Much of the media coverage since the fire has dealt with the flammability of the building’s cladding and how this contributed to the spread of this terrible fire. And the Innovation article covered these questions as they relate to the use of cladding in BC. But there are more questions to be asked. As I watched video of the building engulfed in flames and heard there were 71 fatalities, I asked myself, “Why were these residents unable to escape from the burning building?” It appears that there was only one fire escape for Grenfell Tower’s 24 storeys. And it also appears that there were no sprinklers installed in that fire escape, or elsewhere in the building. A public inquiry is under way in the UK to look into the circumstances surrounding the fire. In addition to questions about the building’s cladding, the inquiry will look at whether there were adequate fire escapes and whether the use of sprinklers would have mitigated the tragedy. These questions are being addressed in relation to the prevailing building and fire regulations in the UK and whether the regulations are adequate. I look forward to reading another Innovation article in due course, when the results of the inquiry are available. — Michael A. Watson, P.Eng. Bowen Island, BC

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