Who would ‘stay put’ in a fire now?

THE testimony from those who lost loved ones in the Grenfell tower fire has been deeply affecting. The dead have become known to us all. One phrase has stood out this week: the fire service’s advice to residents to “stay put”. We do not yet know all the facts but in many cases it seems to have been the wrong advice. Of course one can see why people should “stay put” in a fire and await rescue. Panicking people running for an exit could hamper the work of the emergency services and lead to more casualties.

But the fundamental instinct to run from danger is one that has served human beings well. In our severely proscribed modern society we are encouraged not to rely on our instincts but to follow safety procedures to avoid additional risk.

We expect things that are in the hands of experts to be safe. So we sublimate the evidence of our senses, our hunches, our intuition, our urge to get the hell out.

Mamoudou Gassama, the man from Mali who scaled a Paris building to rescue a small boy dangling from a balcony, has been granted citizenship of France and given a job as a fireman. But would a fireman be allowed to do what he did? In Britain we know that the emergency services attending the Manchester bombing were initially told not to go too near. Gassama acted on his instincts and though he took a great personal risk the end result was little short of miraculous.

Could one outcome of the Grenfell tragedy be that people may be less deferential to official, expert advice?