Buildings Across U.S. Are Wrapped in Same Panels That Fueled Deadly London Fire

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: The Wall Street Journal.

Buildings Across U.S. Are Wrapped in Same Panels That Fueled Deadly London Fire

Experts say polyethylene-core panels, under investigation in the Grenfell Tower fire, endanger people in apartments, offices and hotels

By Scott Calvert in Baltimore, Bob Tita in Chicago, Rachel Pannett in Sydney and Nikhil Lohade in Dubai

Oct. 24, 2017 11:14 a.m. ET

A high school in Alaska, a National Football League stadium, a Baltimore high-rise hotel and a Dallas airport terminal are among thousands of structures world-wide covered in combustible-core panels similar to those that burned in June’s deadly London fire, The Wall Street Journal found.

Safety improvements to building interiors over the past 40 years have helped cut the number of structure fires and related deaths in the U.S. by roughly half, a remarkable victory over one of civilization’s oldest threats.

Read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/built-to-burn-thousands-of-buildings-world-wide-are-wrapped-in-combustible-panels-1508858048

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"Combustible Panels Pose a Global Danger"

That's the print title of article in this morning's The Wall Street Journal. It's on the front page, below the fold. It's subscription. I'll do what I can.

Full disclosure: I own shares of Alcoa.

Retweeted by Scott Calvert: https://twitter.com/scottmcalvert

Combustible-core panels that cover high-rise buildings pose a hidden danger to people living and working inside

Link to tweet

At manufacturer's request, the U.S.'s fire safety code was weakened 5 years ago for more use of combustible panels.

Link to tweet

https://www.wsj.com/articles/built-to-burn-thousands-of-buildings-world-wide-are-wrapped-in-combustible-panels-1508858048?mod=e2tw

or

https://www.wsj.com/articles/built-to-burn-thousands-of-buildings-world-wide-are-wrapped-in-combustible-panels-1508858048

Buildings Across U.S. Are Wrapped in Same Panels That Fueled Deadly London Fire

Experts say polyethylene-core panels, under investigation in the Grenfell Tower fire, endanger people in apartments, offices and hotels

By Scott Calvert in Baltimore, Bob Tita in Chicago, Rachel Pannett in Sydney and Nikhil Lohade in Dubai

https://twitter.com/scottmcalvert

https://twitter.com/bob_tita
[e-mail]

https://twitter.com/RachelPannett
[e-mail]

https://twitter.com/lohadenikhil
[e-mail]

Oct. 24, 2017 11:14 a.m. ET

A high school in Alaska, a National Football League stadium, a Baltimore high-rise hotel and a Dallas airport terminal are among thousands of structures world-wide covered in combustible-core panels similar to those that burned in June’s deadly London fire, The Wall Street Journal found.

Safety improvements to building interiors over the past 40 years have helped cut the number of structure fires and related deaths in the U.S. by roughly half, a remarkable victory over one of civilization’s oldest threats.

[yallerdawg]

1. I don't know building code in California...

but in the aftermath of these huge wildfires, it looks like 'kindling' is an essential material.

[lagomorph777]

2. I still think rock wool and fiberglass are the best

Sure, you can talk about fibers in the air, etc, but these materials are sealed inside walls. The health benefits of reduced pollution for heating/cooling surely outweigh the tiny amount of leakage that might occur. And fire is very unhealthy indeed.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. TWSJ., July: Baltimore Doesn't Know If Hotel Uses Combustible Panels

Baltimore Doesn’t Know If Hotel Uses Combustible Panels

Company that made the type of material that burned in London says it also wraps the Marriott Waterfront

By Scott Calvert and Bob Tita

https://twitter.com/scottmcalvert

https://twitter.com/bob_tita
[e-mail]

Updated July 11, 2017 1:40 p.m. ET

The company that made the combustible panels used on the London housing tower where a fast-moving fire killed at least 80 people says the same type wraps one of Baltimore’s most prominent hotels: the 32-story Marriott Waterfront overlooking the city’s Inner Harbor.

But Baltimore officials say they aren’t sure what is on the hotel because they never asked the architects for details about the hotel’s exterior panels. Two of the...

[hunter]

4. Here in the U.S.A. it always seems our first response is "We're better than that!"

Then a few weeks or months later it's reported, somewhere in the back pages, "no, we're not..."

U.S. American exceptionalism.

I'm guessing every place that used these flammable panels has had a chance to speak with their lawyers and suddenly they know nothing.