This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live/2017/jun/14/grenfell-tower-major-fire-london-apartment-block-white-city-latimer-road
The article has changed 56 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Previous version
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
Next version
| Version 10 | Version 11 |
|---|---|
| London fire: 'number of fatalities' as blaze engulfs tower block – latest | London fire: 'number of fatalities' as blaze engulfs tower block – latest |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 9.37am BST | |
| 09:37 | |
| Damien Gayle | |
| The #GrenfellTower missing persons centre on Freston Rd #grenfellfire pic.twitter.com/qWi5KIjLGC | |
| Francis Dean, from Middlesex, was at the missing persons centre on Freston Road looking for his sister Zainab Deen, who was with her two-year-old son in her flat in Grenfell Tower last night. | |
| “She called me around about half past one, going two, saying that there was a fire, so I had to drive back here. I was on the phone to her, she was on the 14th floor. She came out of the flat and they told her to stay, but because that flat was on fire she went into the next flat, 113. She was in 115.” | |
| “I was telling her to use the stairs. She was a bit frightened, a bit afraid. But the firefighters were telling her to go back in. | |
| “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. | |
| “It’s not looking good because I was chatting to her about 4am and she was trapped and there was smoke. At one point the son collapsed because of the smoke and I told her: you have to give him mouth to mouth.” | |
| Dean has not spoken to his sister since the fire and is still looking for her. Staff at Freston Road told him to move on to a rescue centre at at Rugby Portello Club. | |
| A woman said she had come with her son to look for his friend. From her home in Kingsnorth House, opposite Grenfell Tower, she had watched the fire as it developed through the night. “I was just praying that my friends and families that I know are out of there,” she said. “I heard the screams.” | |
| 9.31am BST | |
| 09:31 | |
| Alexandra Topping | |
| At St Clement’s church on Sidar Road some of those who had been evacuated stood on the street in shock as helicopters hovered overhead. | |
| I spoke to Mahmoud, a 25-year-old refugee from Syria who had come to the UK seeking safety. He lived in Grenfall Tower and was waiting for news of his friend Mohammed, who he last spoke to at 3.30am when he was still trapped in the flat next to the one they shared, desperately trying to escape. | |
| Mahmoud said he lives with two brothers, Mohammed, 24, andOmar, 25, who is in hospital. | |
| Mahmoud had been working and was out when his friend called him to say the tower was on fire. | |
| When Mahmoud, who lives on the 14th floor of the tower with the brothers, got back the fire was small and not on their side of the building, but he watched as it grew and wrapped around the tower. | |
| “I spoke to my friend at about 3.30am. He was saying, ‘Help me.’ My friend who escaped went to one flat and he went to another. They lost each other. I have been friends with them since I was six years old, I don’t know what to do. I am waiting. I hope he is alive. I last spoke to [Mohammed] at 3.30am. He was saying, ‘Please help me. Please tell my family I love them.’ He sounded very scared.” | |
| The last time Mahmoud spoke to Mohammed he believes he was in the next door flat with two adults and a baby. Mahmoud said he last saw his friend Omar, who was on the phone to his trapped brother, at Latimer Road station. | |
| “He was talking to his brother on the phone. He was saying, ‘Go downstairs. Don’t listen to anyone, go downstairs.’ I think he was waiting for the firemen to get to him. | |
| Updated | |
| at 9.37am BST | |
| 9.23am BST | |
| 09:23 | |
| London mayor: questions need to be answered about fire advice | |
| London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, said questions needed to be answered about the fire advice given to residents. | |
| Asked on Radio 4’s Today programme about advice to residents to stay inside their flats in the event of a fire (see earlier) Khan said: “Thankfully residents didn’t stay in their flats and fled to safety. | |
| “One of the concerns that we have is it’s a 24-storey building but for obvious reasons, with the scale of the fire, our experts weren’t able to reach all the way to the top, so of course these are questions that need to be answered as soon as possible.” | |
| He added: “It’s very distressing, not just for those of us watching as lay people, but also very distressing for the emergency services. | |
| “We declared a major incident very early, which meant not just the fire service but also the London ambulance service, the police and the others were involved at the scene.” | |
| More than 100 police officers were on scene, alongside 100 medics and 250 firefighters, he said. | |
| Updated | |
| at 9.29am BST | |
| 9.17am BST | |
| 09:17 | |
| Sarah Marsh | |
| If you have been affected by the events in Grenfell Tower, you can share your stories or news tips with our journalists via the form here or by clicking on the blue “contribute buttons” on the blog. | |
| Did you see events unfold? Do you have family affected? Do you want to share stories about safety measures? Tell us about your experience to help inform our journalism. | |
| You can also share your stories, photos and videos with the Guardian via WhatsApp by adding the contact +44(0)7867825056. Please think about your security first when recording and sharing your content. | |
| Updated | |
| at 9.30am BST | |
| 9.15am BST | |
| 09:15 | |
| Witnesses have described screams of terror and people jumping in a bid to reach safety, PA reports. | |
| One witness described hearing a neighbour screaming for help before apparently jumping out as flames engulfed his seventh-storey flat. | |
| Speaking from an evacuation centre on Freston Road, the woman, who asked not to be named, said: “There was a woman stood behind me who was shouting to someone she knew on the seventh floor. She was on the phone trying to speak to him, she was obviously very emotional because the flats were blazing at this point. | |
| “He looked like he was screaming to her. Police said for anyone at the windows to wave a rag or something so the firemen could rescue them, but we thought: How are they gonna do that? | |
| “I saw the woman later and she was hysterical. She said her friend jumped. The whole of his window was on fire.” | |
| A man identified as Methrob, who lived on the 17th floor, told LBC Radio: “I heard the fire trucks and so I was alerted that something was going on. There was no fire alarm in the building, we don’t have an integrated fire alarm system.” | |
| He said the fire was inside one apartment but added the “real issue was when it caught fire to the cladding outside.” | |
| “That’s when I noticed the fire from outside when I looked out the window. The cladding went up like a matchstick.” | |
| Methrob said residents had been concerned about safety, adding there had been warnings “for over a year”. | |
| Another witness, Samira, told BBC News: “It escalated really quickly. “Around midnight the fire was only around the third floor and then, before you know it, the whole 23 (sic) floors of the building were all on fire and there were people screaming for help and throwing kids out. “I think everyone felt really helpless because no one could get to them. | |
| “Everyone was really scared and they didn’t know what to do and it was really sad to see. There were a lot of people there, children, elderly people and disabled people; my family members, who thankfully made it out. But there are still a lot of people who are unaccounted for.” | |
| Joanna O’Connor, a local resident, told Sky News: “One of our neighbours, her sister, husband and children were in the building, it was their neighbours’ flat that caught fire. | |
| “So it’s very close to us, we’ve got neighbours whose families are in that building.” | |
| Local resident Tamara told BBC News: | |
| Around 12.30/1am my mum called me and said there was a fire outside. By the time I got there the whole right side of the building was on fire, the whole thing was engulfed in flames. | |
| “We could hear people screaming ‘help me’ so me and my brother, with some other people who live in the area, ran over to the estate to where you could still get underneath it and there were people just throwing their kids out saying ‘save my children’. | |
| “The fire crew, ambulance and police couldn’t do anything, they couldn’t get in, and they were just telling them to stay where they are, and we’ll come and get you. | |
| “But things quickly escalated beyond measure and they couldn’t go back in and get them. | |
| “My brother has a lot of school friends who are still wondering if their friends have made it out, they haven’t got in contact with them or heard anything.” | |
| Updated | |
| at 9.21am BST | |
| 8.59am BST | 8.59am BST |
| 08:59 | 08:59 |
| Alexandra Topping | Alexandra Topping |
| Line Sterring, 23, from Denmark, and Isabel Afonso, 22, from Portugal, live in Testerton Walk, next to Grenfell Tower. | Line Sterring, 23, from Denmark, and Isabel Afonso, 22, from Portugal, live in Testerton Walk, next to Grenfell Tower. |
| I spoke to them as they sat on the pavement after being evacuated from their building. They had been given water by the emergency services. | I spoke to them as they sat on the pavement after being evacuated from their building. They had been given water by the emergency services. |
| Sterring said she thought noises she heard at about 1.30am came from neighbours. “My first thought was who is having a party, it was noisy but not screaming and shouting at that point. But then we looked out of the window and everyone was looking at the building.” | Sterring said she thought noises she heard at about 1.30am came from neighbours. “My first thought was who is having a party, it was noisy but not screaming and shouting at that point. But then we looked out of the window and everyone was looking at the building.” |
| Afonso, her flatmate, said they ran downstairs and were told there was a fire. “There were people in the tower sitting on the window saying I’m going to jump down, and people yelling at them ‘don’t jump they are coming’. This is like 1.30 and I didn’t see anyone being evacuated. | Afonso, her flatmate, said they ran downstairs and were told there was a fire. “There were people in the tower sitting on the window saying I’m going to jump down, and people yelling at them ‘don’t jump they are coming’. This is like 1.30 and I didn’t see anyone being evacuated. |
| “A lot of neighbours were trying to help, some of the apartment have access by a kind of bridge to our building so people were helping people over the gate between them. Some people were helping a family of four people with a baby.” | “A lot of neighbours were trying to help, some of the apartment have access by a kind of bridge to our building so people were helping people over the gate between them. Some people were helping a family of four people with a baby.” |
| Sterring said she saw the flames gradually wrap around the building: “at first the fire was on the opposite side of the building to us. The firemen moved into the main road. We couldn’t really see flames but then the fire started on the front and it just started consuming the building. | Sterring said she saw the flames gradually wrap around the building: “at first the fire was on the opposite side of the building to us. The firemen moved into the main road. We couldn’t really see flames but then the fire started on the front and it just started consuming the building. |
| “We could see people waving fairy lights and flags to show their position. At first people seemed calm but then you could see smoke coming out of the windows. When they saw the smoke they started panicking. | “We could see people waving fairy lights and flags to show their position. At first people seemed calm but then you could see smoke coming out of the windows. When they saw the smoke they started panicking. |
| “We saw people in the second top window of the tower. There were four people screaming and shouting and then the window went completely dark from the smoke and that part of the building was covered in flames. | “We saw people in the second top window of the tower. There were four people screaming and shouting and then the window went completely dark from the smoke and that part of the building was covered in flames. |
| “The worst thing was seeing people stuck and you feel so useless. You are just watching people probably dying and the feeling of not doing anything, you just can’t do anything...” | “The worst thing was seeing people stuck and you feel so useless. You are just watching people probably dying and the feeling of not doing anything, you just can’t do anything...” |
| Afonso added:“We could see people banging on their windows screaming for help. It was horrific.” | Afonso added:“We could see people banging on their windows screaming for help. It was horrific.” |
| Line Sterring (R) lives next door to #GrenfellTower. "We saw people screaming from the window then it went dark from the smoke". pic.twitter.com/iHKrpcXx05 | Line Sterring (R) lives next door to #GrenfellTower. "We saw people screaming from the window then it went dark from the smoke". pic.twitter.com/iHKrpcXx05 |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 9.06am BST | at 9.06am BST |
| 8.51am BST | 8.51am BST |
| 08:51 | 08:51 |
| Smoke from the fire has been visible across the London skyline. | Smoke from the fire has been visible across the London skyline. |
| 8.47am BST | 8.47am BST |
| 08:47 | 08:47 |
| Dawn Foster | Dawn Foster |
| Rydon, the company responsible for the cladding and retrofitting refurbishments at Grenfell Tower have scraped all references to the refurbishment from their website. | Rydon, the company responsible for the cladding and retrofitting refurbishments at Grenfell Tower have scraped all references to the refurbishment from their website. |
| Seems the company have taken down the refurbishment details now, here's a cache https://t.co/BvXaPVFHlv https://t.co/xU1QeeBRMc | Seems the company have taken down the refurbishment details now, here's a cache https://t.co/BvXaPVFHlv https://t.co/xU1QeeBRMc |
| But a cached summary of the refurbishment is here. | But a cached summary of the refurbishment is here. |
| The company that provided the external cladding panels for Rydon has since gone bust. | The company that provided the external cladding panels for Rydon has since gone bust. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.52am BST | at 8.52am BST |
| 8.39am BST | 8.39am BST |
| 08:39 | 08:39 |
| The fire safety advice to Grenfell Tower residents was to stay in their flats unless told otherwise. | The fire safety advice to Grenfell Tower residents was to stay in their flats unless told otherwise. |
| A newsletter to residents published in 2014 said: | A newsletter to residents published in 2014 said: |
| Our longstanding ‘stay put’ policy stays in force until you are told otherwise. This means that (unless there is a fire in your flat or in the hallway outside your flat) you should stay inside your flat. This is because Grenfell was designed according to rigorous fire safety standards. Also, the new front doors for each flat can withstand a fire for up to 30 minutes, which gives plenty of time for the fire brigade to arrive. | Our longstanding ‘stay put’ policy stays in force until you are told otherwise. This means that (unless there is a fire in your flat or in the hallway outside your flat) you should stay inside your flat. This is because Grenfell was designed according to rigorous fire safety standards. Also, the new front doors for each flat can withstand a fire for up to 30 minutes, which gives plenty of time for the fire brigade to arrive. |
| 8.30am BST | 8.30am BST |
| 08:30 | 08:30 |
| 50 injured | 50 injured |
| The number of people taken to hospital has increased to 50, according to the latest from the London ambulance service. | The number of people taken to hospital has increased to 50, according to the latest from the London ambulance service. |
| We have now taken over 50 patients to five hospitals across London following the fire at #GrenfellTower Tower. pic.twitter.com/Lt4AFEvQrP | We have now taken over 50 patients to five hospitals across London following the fire at #GrenfellTower Tower. pic.twitter.com/Lt4AFEvQrP |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.33am BST | at 8.33am BST |
| 8.29am BST | 8.29am BST |
| 08:29 | 08:29 |
| The Met has confirmed a number of people have been killed in the fire. In its latest statement it also said the cause of the blaze was likely to take some time to confirm. | The Met has confirmed a number of people have been killed in the fire. In its latest statement it also said the cause of the blaze was likely to take some time to confirm. |
| Our latest statement in relation to the #NorthKensington fire on #Latimerroad this morning #GrenfellTower pic.twitter.com/plfXY8VWBF | Our latest statement in relation to the #NorthKensington fire on #Latimerroad this morning #GrenfellTower pic.twitter.com/plfXY8VWBF |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.33am BST | at 8.33am BST |
| 8.26am BST | 8.26am BST |
| 08:26 | 08:26 |
| Estate resident Ahmed Chellat, who spoke to Alice Ross earlier, has been told that his relatives are safe after they were told to stay in their 21st-floor flat with wet towels under the doors. | Estate resident Ahmed Chellat, who spoke to Alice Ross earlier, has been told that his relatives are safe after they were told to stay in their 21st-floor flat with wet towels under the doors. |
| His sister, brother-in-law, and their two children were advised to stay in the flat and that help was on its way. He told ITV they were safe. | His sister, brother-in-law, and their two children were advised to stay in the flat and that help was on its way. He told ITV they were safe. |
| Chellat confirmed that residents of the estate have had concerns about fire safety for years. He said: “It has been going on for quite some time regarding the safety of the tower. I live in the estate. The safety of the blocks has been a concern for a long time, not just now.” | Chellat confirmed that residents of the estate have had concerns about fire safety for years. He said: “It has been going on for quite some time regarding the safety of the tower. I live in the estate. The safety of the blocks has been a concern for a long time, not just now.” |
| A £9.7m refurbishment project on Grenfell Tower was completed last year. | A £9.7m refurbishment project on Grenfell Tower was completed last year. |
| A summary of the project before it began said: | A summary of the project before it began said: |
| The large scale works … includes an upgrade of the cladding to the exterior of the building, new windows, a totally new heating and lobby smoke ventilation system all of which will greatly enhance the energy efficiency of the tower and contribute to reducing resident’s living costs ... | The large scale works … includes an upgrade of the cladding to the exterior of the building, new windows, a totally new heating and lobby smoke ventilation system all of which will greatly enhance the energy efficiency of the tower and contribute to reducing resident’s living costs ... |
| The lobby smoke ventilation system has been designed to provide the existing stairwell with protection from the ingress of smoke from a fire within a dwelling by means of a mechanical extract system. | The lobby smoke ventilation system has been designed to provide the existing stairwell with protection from the ingress of smoke from a fire within a dwelling by means of a mechanical extract system. |
| Chellat said the new cladding appeared to contribute to the blaze. | Chellat said the new cladding appeared to contribute to the blaze. |
| He said: “I’m not an expert but I think the plastic [cladding] they put outside really triggered the fire. By the time I went out, the plastic was exploding. Half the building was in flames and all the plastic which was bubbling and blowing.” | He said: “I’m not an expert but I think the plastic [cladding] they put outside really triggered the fire. By the time I went out, the plastic was exploding. Half the building was in flames and all the plastic which was bubbling and blowing.” |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.44am BST | at 8.44am BST |
| 8.00am BST | 8.00am BST |
| 08:00 | 08:00 |
| Here is Cotton’s statement: | Here is Cotton’s statement: |
| This is an unprecedented incident. In my 29 years of being a firefighter I have never ever seen anything of this scale. Firefighters are working very hard at the moment. | This is an unprecedented incident. In my 29 years of being a firefighter I have never ever seen anything of this scale. Firefighters are working very hard at the moment. |
| This is a major fire that affected all floors of this 24-storey building from the second floor upwards. I have over 200 of my firefighters and officers attending this incident, with 40 fire engines and a range of specialist vehicles, including 14 fire rescue units. We declared this a major incident very early this morning … the first call coming in at 12.54. Our first fire engines were on the scene in under six minutes. | This is a major fire that affected all floors of this 24-storey building from the second floor upwards. I have over 200 of my firefighters and officers attending this incident, with 40 fire engines and a range of specialist vehicles, including 14 fire rescue units. We declared this a major incident very early this morning … the first call coming in at 12.54. Our first fire engines were on the scene in under six minutes. |
| Crews wearing breathing apparatus and extended duration breathing apparatus have been working in extremely challenging and very difficult conditions to rescue people and bring this major fire under control. | Crews wearing breathing apparatus and extended duration breathing apparatus have been working in extremely challenging and very difficult conditions to rescue people and bring this major fire under control. |
| London ambulance service have confirmed that 30 people have been taken to five hospitals. | London ambulance service have confirmed that 30 people have been taken to five hospitals. |
| I am very sad to confirm that there have been a number of fatalities. I cannot confirm the number at this time due to the size and complexity of this building. It would clearly be wrong for me to speculate further. | I am very sad to confirm that there have been a number of fatalities. I cannot confirm the number at this time due to the size and complexity of this building. It would clearly be wrong for me to speculate further. |
| Equally, the cause of this fire is not known at this stage. | Equally, the cause of this fire is not known at this stage. |
| We are working very closely with our colleagues in the Metropolitan police and the London ambulance service to bring this situation under control. | We are working very closely with our colleagues in the Metropolitan police and the London ambulance service to bring this situation under control. |
| Further information will be made available shortly including advice for those concerned about those who are working here and people who live here. | Further information will be made available shortly including advice for those concerned about those who are working here and people who live here. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.07am BST | at 8.07am BST |