• LIKE many others, I am deeply concerned about the insecurity of life in high-rise apartment buildings. As an architect it occurred to me that people’s chances of a safe evacuation in the event of a fire could be greatly improved with the provision of a small smoke mask with integral oxygen supply for sufficient time to evacuate a building.

There is a clear precedent in the use of similar to evacuate airplanes in the event of a fire. The cost of the masks is modest at about £25 each. Parliament could revise building regulations and introduce a statutory requirement for the provision of smoke masks to all apartments over four storeys, with the cost borne by the developer.

Giving five minutes or less to supporting this important petition at https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/232063/signatures/new could save lives.

CHRIS ROCHE
Founder 11.04 Architects