Tragic events are now under the microscope as questions are raised about Wellington's Loafers Lodge's safety systems after it went up in flames.
Survivors have told Newshub there were no sprinklers and while alarms did go off they were often ignored because too many times they were false flags.
"I've lived at Loafers for three years. That fire alarm has been going off for three years, at 12am, 3am, 5 in the morning and we ignore it," Aiden Tavendale said.
"The alarms go off, people don't leave their rooms because people smoking in rooms and the bloody alarms aren't hooked up," Simon Hanify said.
It's something Fire and Emergency will look at as part of its investigation.
"We're checking that now... checking (alarms) now to ensure the sequence of events with our own monitoring companies," Fire and Emergency Wellington district manager Nick Pyatt said.
Loafer's Lodge passed a building inspection this year and Wellington City Council said no concerns were raised by the inspector.
The building was not required to have sprinklers but some residents told Newshub they did have safety concerns.
"We are going to complain to the manager, or the owner or... I don't know," one resident said.
The owner Gregory Mein wouldn't discuss those concerns or appear on camera while police are investigating but he said he is deeply devastated and was in fact quite emotional when Newshub spoke to him earlier on Tuesday. He said his focus is on those who've died, their families and the surviving tenants.
The Prime Minister isn't ruling out looking at the building rules and regulations following this fire.
"We have regulations in place around health and safety for buildings because bad things can happen and it is important we regularly review those," Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said.
Though the focus for Tuesday night remains on those affected by the fire.
