The cause of a fatal fire at The New County Hotel in Perth has yet to be confirmed six months on.
Sisters Donna Janse Van Rensburg, 44, and Sharon McLean, 47, from Aberdeen and 38-year-old Keith Russell, originally from Edinburgh, died in the January 2 blaze, along with Donna’s dog Joey.
There’s now a call for things to move forward; to give not only loved ones of those who perished but the wider community a chance to understand the events of that night.
Investigation ‘ongoing’
While the cause of the fire has not been confirmed – with an investigation continuing – independent consultants, the fire service and Perth and Kinross Council had all raised health and safety concerns in the weeks prior.
Despite constant queries to Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, nothing further has yet been revealed about the cause of the fire.
A Police Scotland spokesperson told The Courier this week they have no updates to give and enquiries remain ongoing.
Meantime a spokesperson for SFRS said: “As this is police-led as it involves fatalities and Police Scotland have said enquiries are ongoing – we would have nothing to say or add at this point.”
Hotel manager: ‘We need answers’
Karen Kennedy, who was the manager at the hotel at the time of the blaze, says she too has been given very little in the way of updates.
Karen said: “This does seem to be taking an awful long time. I am aware that some members of staff are still being questioned by police with at least two still due to go to speak to the police again next week.”
She added: “In some ways it doesn’t seem like six months since the fire but for the families of those who died it must seem like an eternity without answers.
“Whilst I appreciate all the efforts of the investigation team I hope there are some answers soon for the loved ones and also for staff and the wider Perth community.
“So many people were affected by this tragic event and as well as answers we need to know what went wrong so we can learn lessons and prevent a tragedy like this ever happening again.”
‘Meticulous’ attention to detail
Former Dundee firefighter and ex-regional organiser for the FBU, Jim Malone, said that when a fire results in a loss of life the investigations always take longer.
Jim, who played a part in the Grenfell Inquiry representing firefighters, said: “When there is loss of life in a fire those investigating have to be extra meticulous.
“Any fire investigation is meticulous but when people have died this has to be even more particular.”
Jim said that the SFRS role was to gather as much evidence from the scene regarding the fire itself.
He explained that SFRS fire experts can determine things like rate and direction of the fire, try to find out where and how the fire burned, what caused it and any factors such as fire safety concerns prior to the fire.
He said: “The evidence is then passed to Police Scotland and it is then for them to carry out their own investigations and eventually pass any findings to the Procurator Fiscal.
“This is very very challenging situation and it’s not unusual for an investigation of this kind to take this length of time.
“Police and SFRS resources will also play a part but the main things is that absolute care must be taken to fully understand what happened.”
Health and safety concerns were raised before fire
In the days following the fire The Courier exclusively revealed concerns over health and safety at the hotel.
We obtained a fire safety audit ordered three weeks before the fire which ordered 21 improvements had to be carried out.
The audit by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said existing fire safety arrangements were not considered appropriate.
It also revealed issues with emergency lighting, fire doors and escape routes at the County Place hotel.
It is not known what improvements, if any, were made between the report being sent to the hotel on December 16, and the fire in the early hours of Monday morning.
Meantime The Courier also revealed that three health and safety improvement notices were issued to the hotel by Perth and Kinross Council two weeks before the fire.
These addressed concerns over night-time safety, windows and flooring in the building.
A survey carried out by a independent company at the request of manager Karen and her staff listed 29 areas for improvement.
