Tall Building Fire Safety: The Burning Issue

The vast majority of buildings are a mixture of ignition sources and materials that can act as fuel meaning fire risks have to be managed carefully. Tall buildings, especially where people live, are a particular challenge because of their shape and size. In this lecture Dr Claire M Benson will discuss the technical measures that are meant to be put in place to prevent a ‘towering inferno’ scenario, as well as the oversight failures identified before, and following, the tragic Grenfell tower disaster and how we can stop events like this happening in future.

Dr Claire Benson is a fire and explosion scientist with over ten years experience researching and lecturing as part of the Explosion and Fire Research Group at London South Bank University. She has a PhD in chemical engineering, specialising in high-pressure oxygen system safety. Her research areas include fire suppression, fire and arson investigation, fire safety systems. She has conducted research for the London Fire Brigade, Sellafield Ltd and the Ministry of Defence.