What happened at Gillender Street, London in 1991?

On 10 July 1991 a fire broke out at the Hays Business Services Ltd building on Gillender Street, London. A number of events hampered the efforts of the firefighting crews, including the building employees delaying calling the brigade for seven minutes after the fire alarm sounded.

Tragically, two firefighters lost their lives after running out of breathing apparatus oxygen.

How did the Gillender Street fire start?

The cause of ignition is unclear, however the fire was located by firefighters early into the incident. A hose was laid but it was never used, despite the manual of firemanship stating that water should be applied to a fire as soon as possible. Major failures included:
 

• A failure in command and control
• Failure to debrief crews
• Failure to protect members against heat stress
• Failure to organise reliefs 
• Failure to organise ventilation
• Failure to organise firefighting in general

What can the industry learn from the Gillender Street fire?

Following an investigation the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) served two improvement notices on the fire brigade. The serving of notice was revealed in a report sent to all 114 fire stations by Brian Robinson, Chief Fire Officer and Director of Operations for London.

The enquiry prompted better training for the brigade in order to avoid such failures in the future.