'If there's a fire, there's no plan to get me out the building. The fear of being cremated alive is horrendous.'
Fleeing a burning building is a natural instinct, but for many disabled people it might be impossible to get out unaided. Following the Grenfell Tower fire, recommendations were made to create evacuation plans for residents who need extra assistance to escape, so why did the government go against it?
Last week that fear intensified when a recommendation to make it mandatory for building owners to arrange evacuation plans - known as PEEPs - was turned down by the government. Grenfell United summed it up by saying: "It left them with no personal evacuation plan and no means of escape. They didn't stand a chance."
Crucially, it is about quickly evacuating rather than waiting for the fire service to rescue you when they arrive. "We are utterly appalled," says Georgie Hulme, co-founder of Claddag an organisation fighting for PEEPs to be made mandatory. "Why undertake any consultation or public inquiry, if the results or recommendations are just ignored?"
The government cited practicalities as the stumbling block behind implementing PEEPs. It said it would require "staffing up" buildings to ensure the plan is carried out, but that would cost about £21,900 per building per month. She says, while some might question why disabled people would choose to live in tower blocks, there is often little choice when it comes to housing stock and affordability. People might also choose to live as close to work as possible or near their support network.
Sarah says: "This concept is really worrying. The responsibility is being passed to the fire service. It's not evacuation, it's going to be rescue."
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