PLASTIC cladding was why the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) building in Petaling Jaya caught fire today, said the Fire and Rescue Department.

Its deputy director-general of operations, Soiman Jahid, said preliminary investigations indicated that the cladding did not adhere to safety regulations.

“This fire was not inside the building, it was the cladding that was fixed outside.

“We found that this building was installed with easily flammable cladding, which maybe had not been approved by the authorities,” he said outside the EPF building today.

Soiman said the cladding was made of poly foam, which burns easily.

“This material is flammable and should not be used in a building as it can cause a fire.”

He said sparks from maintenance work at the EPF building caught on the cladding and caused the fire.

EPF released a statement today, assuring members members their savings data were secure.

The pension fund also said its Petaling Jaya office would be closed till further notice.

In June last year, at least 30 people were killed when a fire roared up a London block of council flats that had been wrapped in flammable cladding.

British Prime Minister Theresa May had said combustible cladding had been found in “a number” of publicly owned tower blocks in Britain. – February 13, 2018.