Guest Cannabis Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Waking up to the breaking news that a tower block in London is on fire with residents trapped inside. Probably deserves a thread seeing as its been described as one of the worst infernos ever seen. As far as I know the fire started at 01:00 this morning and is still going now, residents can be seen on live TV waving for help from the fire department.
Smiley Culture Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Unconfirmed reports of people jumping from windows, too. I'll be shocked if there isn't a significant number of casualties here. Absolutely horrific footage of the fire at its peak.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Fire alarms didn't go off. A fire spreading that rapidly on all floors begs the question how safe these ugly communist blocks from the 70s are
Smiley Culture Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 There's a blog out there from the residents outlining their safety fears about the block. I'll try and find it again.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 The death toll is going to be high here and there will be children living there too. This sort of thing shouldn't happen in this day and age.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Just seen that blog. It's pretty damning in terms of historical neglect. How much of it is related to last night no one can know. But I wouldn't be surprised if the woman mentioned in the blog is jailed. It's a very good idea for people to write online blogs with records like this. https://grenfellactiongroup.wordpress.com/2016/01/24/grenfell-tower-still-a-fire-risk/
Administrator Stan Posted June 14, 2017 Administrator Posted June 14, 2017 absolutely terrible to watch. Apparently the block was refurbished last year but was covered in plastic cladding round the outside... 1 hour ago, HoneyNUFC said: Fire alarms didn't go off. A fire spreading that rapidly on all floors begs the question how safe these ugly communist blocks from the 70s are I find it despicable that alarms didn't go off immediately. I work in a place where I have to visit blocks fairly regularly and do fire safety tests regularly. Begs the question of if the right safety precautions were carried out beforehand. Judging from the blogs I've seen, probably not, as complaints had been made to the relevant authorities about the safety of the block anyway.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 The contractors that did the refurb have deleted the overview of the work they had on their website. Dodgy as fuck. Sounds like they've put some cheap plastic throughout the building for insulation.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 The people on the top several floors will be dead. Without doubt. It's burnt to a crisp and the fire truck ladders can't get that high. Apparently just an hour ago there was a partially blind man in his 70s at one of the windows. I don't know if they've got to him. If you live in a tower block, particularly if you've got cheap plastic all over the place you will be shitting yourself now.
Danny Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Has to be one of the worst ways to die, you'd hope the smoke and fumes gets to people before the fire did. RIP.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Respect to fire fighters who go running into buildings like this and work their way up the floors. Incredible bravery.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Unbelievable story coming out that a woman threw her baby out of the window from the 9th floor and soneone caught it down below. No suggestion of the casualty count but this could turn out to be one of the biggest disasters in modern British history. Just don't see how many people at the top would have survived if the fire alarm didn't go off. You're talking 21 floors and the women on the 9th had to throw her baby out of the window. The people above have no chance.
Danny Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Just now, HoneyNUFC said: Unbelievable story coming out that a woman threw her baby out of the window from the 9th floor and soneone caught it down below. No suggestion of the casualty count but this could turn out to be one of the biggest disasters in modern British history. Just don't see how many people at the top would have survived if the fire alarm didn't go off. That's the thing, 24 floors...if the fire spread so quickly then you'd wonder how they'd all get out... This is the sort of fire you see on a dramatic tv programme that you'd just think is so far fetched
Administrator Stan Posted June 14, 2017 Administrator Posted June 14, 2017 1 hour ago, HoneyNUFC said: Respect to fire fighters who go running into buildings like this and work their way up the floors. Incredible bravery. 1 hour ago, HoneyNUFC said: The people on the top several floors will be dead. Without doubt. It's burnt to a crisp and the fire truck ladders can't get that high. Apparently just an hour ago there was a partially blind man in his 70s at one of the windows. I don't know if they've got to him. If you live in a tower block, particularly if you've got cheap plastic all over the place you will be shitting yourself now. agree with both of these. Terrible tragedy and I can imagine why it's so hard for others to think of what's gone wrong. This is why it's so important that many councils/local authorities/housing associationcs have such rigorous tests and abide so strictly with regulations to stop tragedies like this happening. And that's why you don't see many of these things happen because on the whole, the correct procedures are in place and safety requirements in place too. Clearly there were failings in this tower block in more than 1 way. The fire alarms reportedly not going off. ANd if they were, very low sounding and not loud enough to alert people. Criminally pathetic that people INSIDE their flats were having to be notified from those outside that a fire was occuring in the block. Reportedly only one entrance at the front. No rear escape route. Having only one entrance/exit causes bottlenecks and 'traffic' making it slower to get out. Material used in the cladding in the refurbishment clearly not suitable or fit for purpose. The only saving grace (if there is one), is that the fire department were alerted and attended the scene within SIX minutes. As Harvey says, huge credit must go to firefighters who attend these situations. They go towards the scene while others try to flee it. You can't buy bravery and spirit like that.
The Artful Dodger Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Scandal of epic proportions, no building should burn like that. No massive surprise though, companies get away with murder, especially when it comes to poorer people. The gentrification of London is now costing lives.
Honey Honey Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Not sure what gentrification has to do with it. Perhaps allowing people to buy their council flat has created a situation where the government cant knock this communist toot down and build some safe social housing. Here's an article from March by the Fire Risk Management group warning the government that something like this was coming...
The Artful Dodger Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Lots of critics of the local council who care little for the tatty blocks and let cowboys run riot, while doing anything for companies putting up extortionate housing for the wealthy. A local resident was on the BBC before criticising the council and was quickly ushered off, don't be surprised to see this crime hushed up.
Administrator Stan Posted June 14, 2017 Administrator Posted June 14, 2017 Just now, The Artful Dodger said: Lots of critics of the local council who care little for the tatty blocks and let cowboys run riot, while doing anything for companies putting up extortionate housing for the wealthy. A local resident was on the BBC before criticising the council and was quickly ushered off, don't be surprised to see this crime hushed up. agreed. away from mainstream media though it'll get picked up on in a big way. Especially those that sent letters to councils and authorities about the potential dangers of keeping it as it is. Already seen one guy write a blog about crime in the area and safety of the buildings. Only to have a letter from the local council telling him to take the blog post down and effectively telling him to shut up as opposed to conversing with the person about the issues they face.
Fairy In Boots Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 It's going to be 30+ dead I think. We used to chill in a mates flat in central Brum in one of these type of 70's high rises. I'm guessing it's a similar design, you've got shitty lifts centrally located which you can jam fairly easily by hand and you've got a stairwell running up the front of the building which no body will use because it is frequented by smack heads, the only time it's used is for garbage disposal. Both will be out of commission by now if you're not out your done for, I expect the toll to climb. Horrible way to die
Administrator Stan Posted June 14, 2017 Administrator Posted June 14, 2017 Just now, Fairy In Boots said: It's going to be 30+ dead I think. We used to chill in a mates flat in central Brum in one of these type of 70's high rises. I'm guessing it's a similar design, you've got shitty lifts centrally located which you can jam fairly easily by hand and you've got a stairwell running up the front of the building which no body will use because it is frequented by smack heads, the only time it's used is for garbage disposal. Both will be out of commission by now if you're not out your done for, I expect the toll to climb. Horrible way to die yep, where I work we manage a lot of similar style tower blocks and they undergo regular tests for safety in general and fire safety testing. Sadly, it seems this Grenfell block (and no doubt others in the area) have been neglected or ignored in terms of safety of residents.
Smiley Culture Posted June 14, 2017 Posted June 14, 2017 Someone interviewed on BBC said there's rumours an exploding fridge was the cause. That's not yet been confirmed.
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