Belfast’s Obel Tower hit with fire safety issues

It came after the Grenfell Tower disaster, the idea being to reassure residents, apartment owners, mortgage lenders and insurers about a building’s compliance with fire safety standards.

The inspection by international property consultants Hollis of the 279-foot Obel revealed issues with gaps between the exterior cladding and the main structure on one side of floors one to three.

No issues with the cladding itself were found as it is a non-combustible type and the rest of the 28-storey building was deemed to be safe.

A letter sent to apartment owners following the inspection explained: “...there is insufficient fire protection to prevent fire moving from one of the apartments (on floors one to three) into the void between that apartment and the cladding. There are also gaps between the floor slab and the cladding which would potentially allow fire to move vertically between floors one to three if a fire [got] into the void.

“Just to reiterate, this issue only affects and requires remedial work to the areas highlighted above. There are no similar issues in the rest of the building (it has been fully investigated).

“It is also important to reinforce that the cladding used in the building is not a fire risk.”

The letter added that as a result of the findings, a 24-hour walking fire watch had been put in place, with building control at Belfast City Council notified.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) has also been told of the results of the survey and has updated its instructions for firefighters should they be called to the building.

It understood work to fix the problems will be undertaken and completed within the coming months. The inspection was carried out so the Obel could be issued with an EWS1 certificate, which confirms a building’s fire safety.

“Hollis have advised that the EWS certification for the building would be B2, which is the lowest possible rating and would be unsatisfactory in the eyes of most lenders,” explained the letter to apartment owners.

“Their recommendation is not to issue the B2 certificate but to undertake remedial works which would allow an A-rated certificate to be attached to the building.”

Belfast City Council said: “To ensure compliance with the Data Protection Act, [we] cannot disclose information in relation to specific addresses. Our Building Control Service provides advice in relation to any identified improvements to a building which require approval under legislative provisions of the Building Regulations.”

The NIFRS confirmed it was contacted by Obel Tower’s management company following the inspection.

It added: “The NIFRS engaged with the building management company, provided fire safety information and gathered operational data to assist with pre-planning should the NIFRS be required to attend an operational incident at this building.”

The Obel was completed in 2011 at a reported cost of £60million. It houses 282 luxury apartments.

It overtook the 260-foot Windsor House on Bedford Street in Belfast, now the Grand Central Hotel, as the tallest building on the island of Ireland.

The tallest building in the Republic of Ireland is Capital Dock in Dublin, completed in 2018, which is 259 feet.

One two-bed apartment on the fourth floor of Obel Tower is currently on the market for £177,500.

Another on the 15th floor is listed for sale at £199,500.

It was previously reported that before the financial crash in 2009 a penthouse property in the building was priced at £475,000, making it one of the most expensive places to live in Belfast by price per-square-foot.

In 2018, a lot of 26 studio apartments was put on the market for offers over £2million.

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