26/05/2010 - Hotel fined over fire safety breach
A Leicester hotel has been ordered to pay fines and court costs totalling more than £40,000 for breach of fire safety regulations.
Criminal proceedings were initiated against the owner and the general manager of the Park Hotel in London Road after several safety violations emerged following a fire in August last year.
Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service said after firefighters tackled the blaze in the first floor of the hotel, it was noticed that no evacuation procedure had been initiated, and guests and staff were lucky to escape.
Fire Safety Inspectors who visited the site found that the fire alarm in the basement had no sounder and most of the fire doors leading onto the stairs and corridor to the first floor were wedged open.
They also found the management did not carry out weekly testing of fire alarms or monthly tests on emergency lighting, and no certification was available for the fire extinguishers.
The hotel was in breach of a number of the provisions of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the fire service said.
At Leicester Magistrates Court, the hotel's owner Park Hotel Limited, via one of its directors Ram Kalra, and general manager, Ashwin Ratan, both pleaded guilty to 10 offences. The company was fined £29,715 with £8,000 costs and Mr Ratan £2,985 with £380 costs.
Copyright © Press Association 2010
Related links
|
