Burnt tower made ‘pretty’ for rich
CHASM BETWEEN POOR, WEALTHY HIGHLIGHTED ‘People here in social housing know they’ve been neglected.’
Within a short walk from the social housing block in west London where at least 30 people died in a devastating fire are some of Britain’s wealthiest streets, lined with elegant, multimillion-pound townhouses.
The borough of Kensington and Chelsea is famous as the home of pop stars and other celebrities.
But it also has pockets of deprivation like the housing estate where the doomed 24-storey Grenfell Tower stands.
Dozens of residents are missing and authorities say the death toll could rise further after an inferno engulfed the building with terrifying speed as residents slept on Wednesday. The lucky ones got out alive, but have lost everything.
On the street around the tower there was anger as people accused the local authority of neglecting the safety of the poor in favour of policies favouring the rich.
Alia Al-Ghabbani, a receptionist who lives on the estate, was among many angered by a recent refurbishment in which new cladding was added to the exterior of the building and which media reports have said might have played a part in the spread of the fire.
“It’s really irritating why they prettied up the tower. It’s because that tower was such an eyesore for these people in very expensive houses just opposite.”
“People here in social housing know they’ve been neglected,” community organiser Pilgrim Tucker said. “If government was doing its job this wouldn’t have happened.” –