Yahoo – AFP,
Robin MILLARD, June 22, 2017
Safety fears for thousands of tower block residents after London inferno |
London
(AFP) - Tower blocks housing thousands of people across England are being
urgently tested to check if their cladding poses a serious fire risk following
the Grenfell Tower disaster, as the government on Thursday blamed decades of
neglect.
Prime
Minister Theresa May said the government had arranged to test cladding on
"all relevant tower blocks" following the deadly June 14 inferno,
with at least three public housing blocks already found to be covered in
combustible material.
English
local authorities estimate that 600 high-rise buildings have cladding, and the
race is on to establish which ones are covered in the same material that
enclosed Grenfell Tower in west London.
The figure
does not include Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which have autonomous
powers in housing.
The panels
have been widely blamed for the rapid spread of the fire which consumed the
24-storey public housing block, leaving 79 people presumed dead.
They may
also have produced toxic gases when burning and at least three people injured
in the disaster were given an anti-cyanide antidote as a precaution.
Camden
Council in London on Thursday said it will remove cladding from five tower
blocks over fire concerns, raising questions about the status of the thousands
currently living in cladded tower blocks.
"Many
others living in tall residential buildings will have concerns about their
safety after what happened at Grenfell," May said in a statement to
parliament.
"We
cannot and will not ask people to live in unsafe homes."
The full
terror awaiting firefighters at Grenfell was laid bare on Thursday by footage
filmed inside a fire engine as it neared the tower.
Seeing the
entire building ablaze, the stunned firemen asked how such an inferno could
happen, in the footage obtained by the BBC.
They could
be heard saying: "Jesus Christ, that is not a real block with people in
it? How are we going get in that?
"That's
a whole tower block on fire... Oh my God. There's kids in there. How is that
even possible?"
Downing
Street declined to specify whether the cladding on the tower block was
combustible or not, citing an ongoing investigation.
More than
100 buildings a day can be tested and May urged landlords to send samples for
rapid assessment.
She said
landlords were expected to provide people with alternative accommodation if
buildings were found to be unsafe.
Cyanide
poisoning concerns
King's
College Hospital told AFP that three of its patients from the disaster were
given the hydrogen cyanide poisoning antidote Cyanokit as a precaution.
Manufacturer
Celotex stated that the insulation in the cladding would have released
"toxic gases" if it caught fire.
The
National Health Service said 10 patients were still being treated in hospital,
five of whom were in a critical condition.
The
cladding was installed for beautification and insulation despite warnings from
local residents about fire safety as part of a major refurbishment of Grenfell
Tower that was completed last year.
May said
"no stone will be left unturned" in a judge-led inquiry she has
ordered into the blaze.
She has
apologised for the chaotic official response to the fire from local and
national government.
The chief
executive of the local authority, which owned the tower, quit after fierce
criticism over the council's response.
Nicholas
Holgate claims he was forced out from his post in charge of Kensington and
Chelsea council by the British government's Local Government Secretary Sajid
Javid.
However,
Javid's office denied involvement, saying it was a matter entirely for the
council.
The
Justice4Grenfell campaign group welcomed Holgate's departure.
Immigration reassurances
May said
there were now around 600 people working by the site to provide support to
victims and so far there had been 500 visits to the centre.
Each family
whose home was destroyed was receiving a £5,000 (5,700-euro, $6,300)
downpayment.
The tower
itself contained 120 flats. May said 151 homes had been destroyed and that
their occupants were guaranteed new homes on the same terms, within three weeks
and as close to home as possible.
"Nobody
is being forced to move somewhere they don't want to go," she insisted.
May added
that survivors would not be subjected to immigration checks.
"All
victims, irrespective of their immigration status, will be able to access the
services they need," she said.
London
Mayor Sadiq Khan called for an amnesty for any illegal immigrants who survived
the blaze.
#UPDATE Hundreds of tower blocks in England have similar cladding to the burnt-out #GrenfellTower https://t.co/qMtsYT5iV5 pic.twitter.com/mDexZHDyaS— AFP news agency (@AFP) June 22, 2017
Related Articles:
Sixty towers across England found to have unsafe cladding - New
London tower blocks evacuated over fire fears - New
Sixty towers across England found to have unsafe cladding - New
London tower blocks evacuated over fire fears - New
#UPDATE Thousands of residents from 650 London flats evacuated due to fire safety fears after #GrenfellTower blaze https://t.co/P2uZhQQlCr pic.twitter.com/9bdlb1WJ3b— AFP news agency (@AFP) June 24, 2017
No comments:
Post a Comment