Cheap exterior cladding contributed to Grenfell Tower fire

Contact [e-mail] to license this or any News Direct video
For story suggestions please contact [e-mail]
Investigations into the London apartment fire that killed 79 and left hundreds homeless suggest that the flames may have spread rapidly due to the exterior panelling.
According to the Institute of Engineering and Technology, the Grenfell Tower cladding used flammable polyurethane foam in between two aluminum sheets, with an air cavity separating it from the insulation and outer wall.
During the fire, the aluminum face fell away, exposing and igniting the flammable foam inside. The air cavity also acted like a chimney, helping spread the flames upward through the building.
The fire started from the fourth floor, and spread to the top in less than an hour.
The British government instructed officials to conduct safety checks on over 600 high-rises, to check if they were fitted with the same material. Eleven other buildings in in the country have been found to have the same cladding.
This cheaper type of cladding is has been associated with high-rise fires elsewhere around the world. It’s been banned in the U.S. but not in the U.K.
---------------------------------------­­---------------------------------------­-­---------------
Next Animation Studio’s News Direct service provides daily, high-quality, informative 3D news animations that fill in for missing footage and help viewers understand breaking news stories or in-depth features on science, technology, and health.
Sign up for a free trial of News Direct's news animations at newsdirect.nextanimationstudio...
To subscribe to News Direct or for more info, please visit:
newsdirect.nextanimationstudio...