At least six people have died and more than 50 are being treated in hospital after a huge fire engulfed a tower block in west London in the early hours of the morning, Wednesday.
The Metropolitan police said it expected the number of fatalities to rise further, as a result of what Commander Stuart Cundy called a “truly shocking” fire at Grenfell Tower in the Latimer Road area, near Notting Hill.
Hundreds of firefighters battled to rescue residents from their flats after the blaze broke out, shortly before 1am. The fire rapidly engulfed the full height of the 24-storey block, and was still burning strongly more than six hours later, with a thick pall of dark smoke visible across the capital.
Residents could be seen waving and screaming from their windows, as firefighters wearing breathing apparatus fought to rescue them. There were unconfirmed reports from a number of witnesses who spoke of seeing residents jump from their homes as they were engulfed by flames.
The London fire commissioner, Dany Cotton, had earlier confirmed there had been fatalities as a result of the “unprecedented” fire.
“In my 29 years of being a firefighter I have never ever seen anything of this scale,” she said. “This is a major fire that has affected all floors of this 24-storey building, from the second floor upwards.”
Two hundred firefighters were at the scene at the fire’s peak, along with 40 engines and a range of specialist vehicles, including 14 fire rescue vehicles, she said. In addition, at least 20 ambulance crews were in attendance.
However, it has emerged that concerns about fire safety in the tower were raised as early as 2012, when a health and safety review found firefighting equipment had not been checked for up to four years. A residents’ group also raised concerns about the single emergency exit to the building in 2016, warning that if that exit were to become blocked in a fire, people would be trapped inside.
In a blogpost on Wednesday morning, the Grenfell Action Group said: “We have posted numerous warnings in recent years about the very poor fire safety standards at Grenfell Tower and elsewhere in [the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea].
“ALL OUR WARNINGS FELL ON DEAF EARS and we predicted that a catastrophe like this was inevitable and just a matter of time.”
The 1970s building underwent a £10m refurbishment that was completed last year, when it was fitted with a new communal heating system, double glazing and exterior cladding. There are believed to be 120 homes in the tower.
Meanwhile, victims have criticised alleged slow response by emergency personnel with one lamenting that “their response was too slow and besides the building burned too fast. This is a new building, when she got the flat they were still renovating it. I don’t think it’s been two years yet, and now fire. Somebody’s got to be held accountable for this.”
