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Firefighters have criticised the lack of early warning fire systems at an Auckland commercial building which was severely damaged by fire this morning.
Fire ripped through The Auckland Hotel and Chefs' Training School in Mountain Rd, Epsom, around 6am.
Fire safety office Russell Dickson said by the time firefighters arrived the building was well alight.
He said that the Building Code required only that the building was fitted with a manual fire alarm.
"A manual fire alarm is a waste of time because it needs someone physically there." The building was unoccupied.
Mr Dickson said that had the building been fitted with smoke alarms or sprinklers the damaged would have been much less severe.
The building would be out of action for weeks if not months while repairs were carried out.
The fire, thought to have started in an administration area, was not been treated as suspicious, Mr Dickson said.
- NZPA
