Shock, horror, sadness, anger, dejection, defiance…reactions to the fire that gutted the Architecture Faculty building have been many. One week later and the TU Delft community is still trying to figure out exactly what happened and what comes next.
Delta’s editorial staff compiled the following report.
Perhaps it’s sometimes better not to know what caused a fire. Take for example the ‘Great Chicago Fire of 1871′, which destroyed thousands of homes and killed hundreds of people. That fire started when a certain Mrs. O’ Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern. Up went her barn and Chicago in flames.
As for the ‘Great TU Delft Fire of 2008’, which razed the Architecture Faculty to the ground last week? Initial reports said a defective coffee machine on the 6th floor had ignited the devastating blaze that destroyed personal, professional and academic effects and belongings too numerous to even attempt to quantify. An entire university faculty went up in smoke at an estimated cost of 125 million euro.
Although recent reports claim a burst water pipe may have caused a short circuit and fire in a building that wasn’t equipped with a sprinkler system, it is likely that we will never know for sure what in fact started the fire.
Meanwhile, led by the spirited efforts of faculty dean, Wytse Patijn, the Architecture Faculty and university are trying to move forward positively and resolutely, with meetings focusing on both daily disaster management and crucial future planning. The most pressing concern is finding a place for the Architecture Faculty to call home. To this end, temporary tents have been erected on campus where students and staff can meet, study and socialize.
While praising the “unique solidarity that has embraced us all after this disaster”, Patijn also remarked that he was especially pleased that the faculty’s ‘BouwPub’ had re-opened in one of tents: “We needed a place where we could meet, and that is now this field. We must actually be a field university. We are a faculty that has context as our field of action.”
Continuing this tone of glass-half-full optimism, TU President Dirk Jan van den Berg declared the faculty “up and running again”, while adding that discussions were now being held to determine where the faculty would be housed for the coming years. Leanne Reijnen, chairperson of the faculty student council, asked for assurances that architecture students would be kept together and a good temporary solution found for students who will graduate before a new faculty building is built.
“There must be a suitable place found for us,” Reijnen said. “Being able to interact with each other is a must for the Architecture Faculty. If we keep focusing on making this happen, we’ll emerge from this disaster stronger.”
And a disaster it was: among the many irreplaceable objects lost in the fire was the ‘Sluyterman Collection’, consisting of antique art objects from the Jugendstil, Art Nouveau and Golden Age schools. The collection of Karel Sluyterman, an esteemed 19th century TU Delft professor, was to be part of an exhibition to be held at the architecture faculty last week.
All was not lost, however. Approximately 350 books from the Architecture Faculty’s library were saved, including ancient books, like the ‘Major City Atlas of Italy’, by Joan Blaeu, dating from 1724. Faculty Dean Patijn was also hopeful that the many prints, maps and photos stored in the library’s basement would eventually be recovered.
‘Burn down’
The aftermath of the fire has raised many questions, both locally and nationally. Earlier this week TU President Van den Berg had to deny a report in the national De Telegraaf newspaper, which claimed that Delft Fire Chief, Jan Bron, had said that the Architecture Faculty “absolutely did not meet the current fire safety regulations.”
The following day, Chief Bron rejected De Telegraaf report, while referring all further questions to a Delft municipality spokesperson, who said the building did meet fire safety regulations for existing buildings.
“In 2005, the fire department evaluated the building. Everything was in order,” the municipality spokesperson said, adding that the issue about more than just regulations. “It’s also about how a building is used. If people leave connecting doors open and stuff in the hallways, this has little to do with set regulations.” Fire inspections will endeavor to determine if in fact people had ‘used’ the Architecture Faculty building in this way.
The fire and clean up at TU Delft has also engaged some Delft city council members. The rightwing political party ‘Leefbaar Delft’ has requested an interpellation debate during the May 29th city council meeting. Leefbaar Delft wants more information about the fire department’s actions during the fire. On the party’s website, Leefbaar Delft council member Jan Peter de Wit complained: “The fire department spoke about a controlled ‘burn down’. I understand this to mean that as much as possible the building or surrounding buildings are saved. Yet at 11:30 I saw three jets of water aimed at the fire on the sixth floor, but none on the floors that were not yet on fire.”
De Wit wants Delft mayor Bas Verkerk to explain why the fire got so out of control. De Wit: “It’s a first-class failure for Delft that such a high-profile building could be completely destroyed by a coffee machine.” Delft Municipality and TU Delft however have stated that they are satisfied with fire department’s actions.
Despite the questions and controversies surrounding the fire, the Faculty of Architecture and TU Delft remain upbeat and positive. Patijn praised the ‘heartwarming reactions’ received from institutions around the world, including from Zurich, Aachen and Harvard. “It turns out we are at the center of a network,” Patijn said. Meanwhile, TU President Van Den Berg offered some light relief. Speaking during the festive unveiling of the Architecture Faculty tents this week, Van Den Berg had but just one request: “Please, no smoking in the tents!”
Perhaps it’s sometimes better not to know what caused a fire. Take for example the ‘Great Chicago Fire of 1871′, which destroyed thousands of homes and killed hundreds of people. That fire started when a certain Mrs. O’ Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern. Up went her barn and Chicago in flames.
As for the ‘Great TU Delft Fire of 2008’, which razed the Architecture Faculty to the ground last week? Initial reports said a defective coffee machine on the 6th floor had ignited the devastating blaze that destroyed personal, professional and academic effects and belongings too numerous to even attempt to quantify. An entire university faculty went up in smoke at an estimated cost of 125 million euro.
Although recent reports claim a burst water pipe may have caused a short circuit and fire in a building that wasn’t equipped with a sprinkler system, it is likely that we will never know for sure what in fact started the fire.
Meanwhile, led by the spirited efforts of faculty dean, Wytse Patijn, the Architecture Faculty and university are trying to move forward positively and resolutely, with meetings focusing on both daily disaster management and crucial future planning. The most pressing concern is finding a place for the Architecture Faculty to call home. To this end, temporary tents have been erected on campus where students and staff can meet, study and socialize.
While praising the “unique solidarity that has embraced us all after this disaster”, Patijn also remarked that he was especially pleased that the faculty’s ‘BouwPub’ had re-opened in one of tents: “We needed a place where we could meet, and that is now this field. We must actually be a field university. We are a faculty that has context as our field of action.”
Continuing this tone of glass-half-full optimism, TU President Dirk Jan van den Berg declared the faculty “up and running again”, while adding that discussions were now being held to determine where the faculty would be housed for the coming years. Leanne Reijnen, chairperson of the faculty student council, asked for assurances that architecture students would be kept together and a good temporary solution found for students who will graduate before a new faculty building is built.
“There must be a suitable place found for us,” Reijnen said. “Being able to interact with each other is a must for the Architecture Faculty. If we keep focusing on making this happen, we’ll emerge from this disaster stronger.”
And a disaster it was: among the many irreplaceable objects lost in the fire was the ‘Sluyterman Collection’, consisting of antique art objects from the Jugendstil, Art Nouveau and Golden Age schools. The collection of Karel Sluyterman, an esteemed 19th century TU Delft professor, was to be part of an exhibition to be held at the architecture faculty last week.
All was not lost, however. Approximately 350 books from the Architecture Faculty’s library were saved, including ancient books, like the ‘Major City Atlas of Italy’, by Joan Blaeu, dating from 1724. Faculty Dean Patijn was also hopeful that the many prints, maps and photos stored in the library’s basement would eventually be recovered.
‘Burn down’
The aftermath of the fire has raised many questions, both locally and nationally. Earlier this week TU President Van den Berg had to deny a report in the national De Telegraaf newspaper, which claimed that Delft Fire Chief, Jan Bron, had said that the Architecture Faculty “absolutely did not meet the current fire safety regulations.”
The following day, Chief Bron rejected De Telegraaf report, while referring all further questions to a Delft municipality spokesperson, who said the building did meet fire safety regulations for existing buildings.
“In 2005, the fire department evaluated the building. Everything was in order,” the municipality spokesperson said, adding that the issue about more than just regulations. “It’s also about how a building is used. If people leave connecting doors open and stuff in the hallways, this has little to do with set regulations.” Fire inspections will endeavor to determine if in fact people had ‘used’ the Architecture Faculty building in this way.
The fire and clean up at TU Delft has also engaged some Delft city council members. The rightwing political party ‘Leefbaar Delft’ has requested an interpellation debate during the May 29th city council meeting. Leefbaar Delft wants more information about the fire department’s actions during the fire. On the party’s website, Leefbaar Delft council member Jan Peter de Wit complained: “The fire department spoke about a controlled ‘burn down’. I understand this to mean that as much as possible the building or surrounding buildings are saved. Yet at 11:30 I saw three jets of water aimed at the fire on the sixth floor, but none on the floors that were not yet on fire.”
De Wit wants Delft mayor Bas Verkerk to explain why the fire got so out of control. De Wit: “It’s a first-class failure for Delft that such a high-profile building could be completely destroyed by a coffee machine.” Delft Municipality and TU Delft however have stated that they are satisfied with fire department’s actions.
Despite the questions and controversies surrounding the fire, the Faculty of Architecture and TU Delft remain upbeat and positive. Patijn praised the ‘heartwarming reactions’ received from institutions around the world, including from Zurich, Aachen and Harvard. “It turns out we are at the center of a network,” Patijn said. Meanwhile, TU President Van Den Berg offered some light relief. Speaking during the festive unveiling of the Architecture Faculty tents this week, Van Den Berg had but just one request: “Please, no smoking in the tents!”
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