After the fire: reconstruction following destructive fires in historic buildings

Given the recent spate of high profile fires in historic buildings this article will consider the factors that influence the remedial approaches adopted. It will show that if the significance is of a high level, the extent of damage is not prohibitive and there are the financial means to allow, reconstruction may be an acceptable option. The exact form that this might take depends on a wide variety of factors, including the consensus reached by a range of stakeholders in the building; the exact nature of the significance; having sufficient documentation to establish a basis for accurate replacement (or, where this is lacking, to exclude this as an option) and what precisely the available funds will permit. It is suggested that there is considerable imprecision in the way in which types of reconstruction are categorised and that it remains of key importance to establish clearly what is meant in each individual situation. Although the emphasis should always be on preventing fires from occurring in the first place and of reducing as far as possible the potential damage that might result, having full and complete documentation for any important building is a necessary pre-emptive measure to allow for the worst case and give the subsequent potential for reconstruction.