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| Andrew Pope at a Very Wet Shirley Towers Photo: Southampton Independents |
Following up on his previous campaigning on fire safety in Council tower blocks, Andrew Pope has been investigating the concerns of Shirley Towers residents.
What he has found is very disturbing, considering that he campaigned for sprinklers to be installed in all twenty Council tower blocks.
Two firefighters - Alan Bannon and James Shears - died in a fatal fire at Shirley Towers in 2010. A memorial plaque was unveiled in 2023.
Andrew says:
"The Labour Councillor and Cabinet Member for Housing Andy Frampton is trying to avoid accountability for ongoing fire safety breaches. It is unacceptable that he refused to answer residents' concerns when I contacted him directly.
As in 2018, when I brought BBC Radio 5 Live to Southampton, fire doors are compromised and not fixed in a timely manner. When I reported it to officers, they asked if it had been reported.
It is the responsibility of the Council to regularly inspect and fix.
And now, I have learned from multiple residents that some sprinklers are not working and have not been since December, after a fire in the bin area.
I have not seen any media report of that fire, so I am bringing it to the media's attention.
Residents are worried, so I am trying to get action and answers.
It has been difficult to even reach the right people to get action taken or get reassurance.
I will not stand by and let residents be put at risk again."
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| Compromised fire door in Shirley Towers Photo: Southampton Independents |
Andrew's campaign for sprinklers in all Council tower blocks began before the Grenfell disaster in 2017, and after the Redbridge Towers fire when he was Independent Redbridge ward councillor.
As documented on the Southampton Independents website, his campaign encountered stiff resistance from Councillor Warwick Payne of the Labour-run Council who said that residents did not want sprinklers and did not have the money to do what he was asking them to do for residents.