UNDER FIRE
Large wood frame construction projects came under fire again yesterday when the president of the Fire Chief's Association of B.C. called for the province’s cities to enforce stricter fire safety rules for such structures during construction.
In 2009, the province changed the building code, making room for wood frame buildings of up to six stories high. The move was part of the B.C. Wood First Act, initiated by the province’s former forest minister Pat Bell.
Len Garis, who is the fire chief in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey and the Association’s head, said a massive fire during the construction of a four-story building in Surrey in 2008 prompted him to work on revising the fire protection guidelines for wood frame construction. A similar fire In May of this year resulted in the destruction of a six-storey wood building under construction in Richmond, B.C., which is another Vancouver suburb.
"There is no protection. They are a huge pile of kindling," Garis explained. "They are hugely challenging to your resources."
Garis said developers should be required to install and activate sprinkler systems on each floor as the building is constructed from the foundation up, He would also like to see water available onsite throughout the building process and fire doors installed as early as possible in the construction process.
Surrey has already adopted the guidelines and according to Garis, fire chiefs in B.C. have the authority to require the changes under the B.C. Fire Services Act.
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