Cardiff volunteer remembers the Grenfell tragedy

IT’S a tragedy that shook the world.

On June 14, 2017, a catastrophic fire swept through Grenfell Tower in North Kensington, London, killing 72 people.

One year on, a Cardiffian who was at the forefront of efforts to help those affected by the disaster has spoken of the memories of his shock at the scale of devastation – as well as how inspired he has been by the community’s reaction.

The Sunday after disaster struck, four British Red Cross volunteers from Wales – including one from Cardiff – travelled to support those affected.

They were among the first nonLondon based volunteers to respond to the tragedy and provided support at the family and friends assistance centre that had been set up at the Westway Sports Centre.

They met people who had been displaced following the evacuation of the building, people who had lost loved ones and people from the community who rallied round to help those in need.

The four volunteers all spent a week at Westway. And, following their lead, more than 40 more Red Cross volunteers from Wales travelled to London to lend a helping hand.

All were awarded the British Red Cross’ Dunant Award, the highest team honour the charity can bestow.

Rob Donovan, 33, from Cardiff, is the British Red Cross’ emergency response operations manager for Wales. He led the team of Welsh volunteers having only been in his role for six months.

“When the fire happened, I offered to carry out a strategic management role from Cardiff,” he said. “Usually I’d expect to receive maybe eight or 10 calls but I had more than 100 concerning Grenfell on that first day.

“It became clear that the team in London needed extra support at the rest centre and I offered to travel with a small group of volunteers from Wales.

“When I arrived in the area you could immediately see the building, smell it and even taste it when the wind blew in your direction.

“There were missing people posters everywhere with pictures of friends and relatives and telephone numbers people could call.

“That was quite a shocking thing to see. It was quite apparent, even at that point, that many of those people may never be seen again.

“At the rest centre, people were being accommodated and others were coming and going for information about things like housing, health care and passports.

“There were also people living in housing that was looking out at the tower and they needed support too.

“Thanks to donations from private companies, we managed to create a space with furniture in the middle of the centre that I thought would just make waiting a little bit more comfortable but it became a sort of social space.

“I hadn’t envisaged that when we put it together, but you have to remember that people were staying in hotels, and wanted to spend time with their neighbours from the tower. It was great for the kids, who had a place to run around and play.

“The leisure centre environment was now a bit more homely and a nicer place to get support. I was still very new to the Red Cross at the time. It’s weird looking back and thinking how new I was to it all.

“I was proud of the work we did, proud of the volunteers, and proud to play a role in that. It affected me for a long time afterwards being exposed to all that grief and even just seeing the wreckage of the building.

“I was very inspired by the fact that the community came together in London and from all across the country.

“The people there empowered themselves and they were helping one another. People threw open the doors of places of worship and community centres – people travelled from Wales and Scotland and Northern Ireland.

“It was inspiring. When a crisis happens, Grenfell proves that people will support each other.”