Lack of understanding of the manner in which the systems operate is one of the chief reasons such myths continue to influence architects and designers when they argue against installing them. The classic misrepresentation statement on sprinklers, or in this case the absence of them, has to be the UK Government Minister who stated after the Windsor Castle fire in 1992; "Thank God there were no sprinklers, the damage would have been far worse if there had been." It is difficult to imagine how he thought this might be so. After all, with sprinklers, at worst, the discharge would have been a few thousands of litres of water. Without them the Royal Berkshire Fire Service had to pump several million litres into the building - a great deal of which is still in the walls and substructures.
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