14.06.17
Kensington council warned of ‘criminally lax’ safety standards years before Grenfell Tower fire
A fire has ripped through a council building this morning, killing at least six people and destroying the homes of hundreds more.
The Grenfell Tower building, situated in Kensington in West London, is managed by the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO) on behalf of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
Serious questions have now been raised about the authority after it was revealed that residents had warned council officers on numerous occasions about fire hazards in the building.
Though it is unclear where the fire started, blog posts from the Grenfell Action Group dating back as far as four years ago have repeatedly raised issues with fire safety in the building, and paint a picture of an authority that failed to listen to its residents about the serious risk with the building.
In a blog post in November last year, a resident wrote: “It is a truly terrifying thought, but the Grenfell Action Group firmly believe that only a catastrophic event will expose the ineptitude and incompetence of our landlord, the KCTMO, and bring an end to the dangerous living conditions and neglect of health and safety legislation that they inflict upon their tenants and leaseholders.”
The blog also labelled KCTMO as an “evil, unprincipled mini-mafia” as it slammed the company and the local authority’s inability to fix clear issues with the building.
A separate post described how people living in the building were advised to stay in their flats in the event of a fire somewhere else in the block and accused the council and its associate’s attitude to fire safety as “criminally lax”.
The mayor of London Sadiq Khan has now stated that “there will be a great many questions over the coming days as to the cause of this tragedy”.
“I’m truly devastated to see the horrific scenes of the major fire at Grenfell Tower in Kensington,” he said.
He confirmed that a number of people had lost their lives and that more than 50 had been taken to hospital for injuries, with many others still unaccounted for.
In a statement, council leader Cllr Nick Paget Brown said: “This is a terrible day for Kensington and Chelsea and we are doing all we can to support the victims and their families.
“At present all our focus has to be on supporting the rescue and relief operation. But the cause of the fire will need to be fully investigated and we will keep people informed.”
Top Image: Victoria Jones PA Wire
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