How many buildings still have flammable cladding?
Despite the government's pledge to remove all combustible cladding by this month, around 2,000 buildings remain coated with it. In the run-up to the third anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire, the housing, communities, and local government committee convened. The committee said that it is "deeply concerned" that not all exposed cladments have been removed and that it is "essential that all public and private landlords ensure that any remaining combustible materials are removed as soon as possible". Grenfell was one of these still covered buildings. The London Fire Brigade (LFB) confirmed in February 2019 that the tower block remains unsafe and warned that it could burn for more than a week after the blaze was extinguished four months earlier than expected. The LFB said that it would continue to monitor the building. In June 2018, an eight-story building in Seattle's Denny Triangle had its first floor engulfed in flames due to a heater being used during construction. No one was injured in the incident which led city officials to declare the building safe for occupancy. But the building was again found to have dangerous conditions after another fire broke out there last December. This time it burned for five hours before being put out by firefighters. No one was injured in this second incident.