GRENFELL INQUIRY: VICTIMS ARE COMMEMORATED
THE Grenfell Tower inquiry was stunned into silence on its opening day as it heard the heartwrenching tale of its youngest victim, stillborn Logan Gomes.
His parents Marcio and Andreia were yesterday the first of many to stand before the packed hearing to re-live the horrors of the blaze.
All present rose for a 72-second silence – one second for each victim of the inferno last June 14.
The first of six days of commemorations then got under way, starting with Marcio, 39, who lived on the 21st floor of the tower block with his wife and two daughters.
They fled the fire at around 4am but later that day, with pregnant Andreia and the girls in comas, he discovered they had lost Logan.
Showing an ultrasound scan on a large screen in the hearing room, Marcio said: “This was our little star, Logan Gomes. His due date was on the 21st of August, but instead he was born on June 14.
“That evening I was fortunate enough to hold my son. I had my son in my arms that evening, hoping it was all a bad dream, wishing, praying for any kind of miracle, that he would open his eyes, move, make a sound. But that never happened.”
With his wife behind him, Marcio wiped away tears throughout his powerful address.
Another image displayed on the screen read: “Twinkle twinkle little star, do you know how loved you are?” Marcio said it was a sign they had placed on the wall of their unborn child’s nursery, which had been excitedly prepared as the family awaited Logan’s arrival.
He said: “It was our way of showing how much we loved our son Logan, even though he wasn’t born at that time.”
Marcio told how the family had been on “adventures together” with unborn Logan, showing a slide of pregnant Andreia and one daughter doing a “Gruffalo search”. He said: “We had so much planned for him. The girls were planning on which football team he’d support... Benfica from Portugal and Liverpool.
“Everyone was so happy that Logan was going to be born, no more so than my wife. She was just glowing with happiness.
“We cried during the reveal party, when I found out it was a boy. We all cried, the girls were really happy.”
Marcio told how Logan was going to be his “gaming buddy” and sit by him playing on the Xbox. He said: “He might not be here physically, but he will always be here in our hearts and that will be forever.”
As an image of Logan’s body appeared on the screen, Marcio went on: “He was so peaceful, so restful, he looked like he was just sleeping. At that moment, we felt like our hearts had broken.” Breaking down, he added: “At least we were able to be with him.
“A friend once told us God gives his hardest battles to his strongest soldiers, and certainly this has been our hardest battle. You never know what you’re made of until you are broken. And I can tell you this, my wife is made of the hardest material I know, and without her strength and courage I would not be here.”
At this, Marcio turned and nestled his head into Andreia’s shoulder. The hearing, whose attendees included coroner Fiona Wilcox, sat in silence as the couple embraced and wept.
The tributes moved inquiry chair Sir Martin Moore-Bick, who thanked all those who gave presentations. Earlier, lead council Richard Millett QC had said Grenfell was not “a lawyer’s argument or scientist’s experiment”.
He said: “Grenfell was home. It was a joined-up community whose members worked, played, prayed and lived together. Many died together.”
Mr Millett said it was only right the inquiry started with “the voices and faces” of the tragedy and not analysis. He added: “In our search [ for truth]... we risk losing sight of why we’re doing it and the people we’re doing it for.”
The inquiry, at Millennium Gloucester hotel in South Kensington, West London, will analyse the fire and Grenfell’s design. After the commemorations it will break then restart on June 4, and run until November.
Grenfell’s community lived, and many died, together RICHARD MILLETT QC PAYS TRIBUTE TO VICTIMS
How high-rise flats in London’s wealthiest borough were allowed to ignite into a giant crematorium is the core question.
Answers are needed to identify who was responsible and what needs doing to ensure this never happens again.
Tenants who were ignored, their voices often unheard when they complained, finally have a platform and these families deserve sympathy, respect and support.
Each family has a personal story to tell which the public must hear.
Their struggle for justice is our struggle to build a better Britain for everybody and not just a privileged few.