England tests high-rise towers housing thousands for flammable cladding

LONDON // Tower blocks housing thousands of people across England are being urgently tested to check if their cladding poses a serious fire risk after the Grenfell Tower disaster.

The British government yesterday blamed decades of neglect for causing the catastrophe. Prime minister Theresa May said the government had arranged to test cladding on “all relevant tower blocks”, with at least seven public housing blocks 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 conflagration that destroyed 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 Grenfell Tower disaster were given an anti-cyanide antidote as a precaution.

London’s Camden Council yesterday said it would remove cladding from five tower blocks over fire concerns, raising questions about the status of the thousands of people living in cladded tower blocks.

“Many others living in tall residential buildings will have concerns about their safety after what happened at Grenfell,” Mrs May told parliament. “We cannot and will not ask people to live in unsafe homes.”

More than 100 buildings a day can be tested and Mrs May urged landlords to send samples for swift assessment.