Dorset County Council
Dear Mr Mair
I note from your last letter to me that you also hold the
position Clerk for the Dorset Fire Authority,hence I wish to take up the
subject title with you as well as the current FOIA for the Coastal Path.
I am deeply concerned for the safety of the Pupils and Staff
of the Lychett Minster School in Dorset because it has not been provisioned
with any Lightning Risk Assessment despite a serious fire at the school which
burned down the Library and Theatre section of the school a couple of
years ago..
Dorset Fire Authority Fire Report confirmed the Root Cause
for the Fire was Lightning but no LRA was carried out on the New Rebuild.
I must therefore assume ALL Dorset Schools have not been
provisioned with LRA. Please confirm the LRA on Government Properties in
Dorset.
I am also deeply concerned that neither Dorset Fire
Authority or Dorset County Council appear to have learned any lessons from the
Lychett School Fire.
In fact, the Lychett Mister Fire report reads more like a
comedy of errors, which is akin to Carry on Firemen.
The Dorset Fire Authority report confirmed the fire was
caused by lightning but the Fire Authority failed to report the quality
of the Lightning Protection System at the time of the fire. It strikes me the
Dorset Fire Authority and the Dorset County Council are ignorant to Lightning Protection
Standards and requirements.
My personal assessment of the Lightning Protection System at
Lychett Minster Schools is the system was installed by cowboys.
Not for one moment am I being critical of the brave
Dorset firemen who attended the Lychett Minster school, but I am most critical of
the Dorset Fire Authority management and the Dorset County Council designers.
Dorset Fire Authority and Dorset Council did not learn
any lessons from the Lychett Minster School and I wish to take up this
issue with the Dorset Fire Authority via their clerk.
There is a similar situation here in Devon where 500 +
schools have not been provisioned with any Lightning Risk
Assessment,which ,quite frankly, beggars belief. Whether or not this anomaly is
isolated to Devon and Dorset, I know not but I would be grateful if you
would forward this letter to the National Fire Chief’s Association.
For your information action files.
With thanks
Yours sincerely
Alan M Dransfield.
