Firefighters want derelict buildings made secure

Fire safety officers have urged the owners of derelict buildings to keep them secure after firefighters searched a dangerous, burning building for anyone trapped inside.

The three-storeyed derelict building on Customs Street East in downtown Auckland had been burning for at least an hour before the alarm was raised. It took about 45 minutes to control the fire.

Fire safety officer Ray Coleman said it had "paper for Africa", carpets, and other fittings inside and the investigation had already found at least four seats of fire.

The building had been torched at least three times in the last few years and was a magnet for street kids and homeless people, Mr Coleman said.

"They are an open invitation. There are a lot of derelict buildings around town and unless the owners board them up tight, a lot of transients use them for shelter.

"That creates a problem for us in the sense that if a fire does occur we have to carry out a thorough search."

He said firefighters wanted transients kept out of derelict buildings.

Many buildings were "rabbit warrens" and hard to search. "Once our firefighters make entry, if we are advised or think there may be someone in there, we can spend a long time trying to find them."

He said searching the derelict buildings put the lives of the firefighters at risk.

"There are holes in the floor, all sorts of wiring hanging down and no matter how familiar you are [with the building] and no matter how many times you come down here, the scene changes.

"The fire could have easily spread to an adjacent building.

"They all butt on to each other and have common walls. A lot of the older buildings are interconnected through the basements and certainly the compromising of one building can effectively compromise more on either side of it," he said.

About eight months ago the building was badly damaged when firefighters turned out in force to fight a suspicious fire. They were also called to the same building about a month ago.

- NZPA