Shanghai fire probe finds bogus deals, cut corners

[marmar]

AP, via Toronto Star:



Firefighters try to extinguish a fire at a building in Shanghai Nov. 15. Investigations have revealed building workers cut corners.
ALY SONG/REUTERS


SHANGHAI — Investigators probing a fire that ravaged a downtown Shanghai high-rise apartment, killing at least 53 people, say an energy-saving project that used illegal contracts, unsafe materials and unqualified workers is mainly to blame.

The blaze Monday gutted the 28-story building, leaving 70 injured and dozens unaccounted for, and prompted a belated crackdown on illegal construction work and lax fire precautions. It also is raising alarm over widespread use of flammable insulation used to retrofit buildings to meet new energy standards.

“The accident should not have happened and was completely avoidable,” Luo Lin, head of the State Administration of Work Safety, said in remarks posted Thursday on his agency’s website.

Luo listed a litany of problems with the government-sponsored energy-saving project: illegal use of unlicensed subcontractors, poor construction site management, lax local safety supervision and use of highly flammable nylon netting, insulation and other materials that caused the fire to spread out of control throughout almost the entire building. ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/892812--shanghai-fire-probe-finds-bogus-deals-cut-corners?bn=1