Grenfell Tower remembered

Serviceheldforsurvivorsandbereavedoneyearafterthetowerblockfire

Grenfell Tower survivors and bereaved families were joined by hundreds of mourners including popstars Adele and Stormzy to pay silent respect to the dead one year on.

Those touched by the tragedy which claimed 72 lives gathered near the foot of the block in west London for a moving ceremony which was closed to the public.

Many arrived dressed in green, the colour that has come to symbolise the terrible events of June 14 2017.

The 72 seconds of silence which fell over North Kensington shortly before midday led a minute’s commemoration observed across the c o u n t r y, including at Government buildings, the Palace of Westminster and by the Queen and the Duchess of Sussex in Chester.

The Mayor of London was among those to lay a wreath at the fence still separating the tower’s hollowed skeleton from the rest of London.

Nicholas Burton, a former 19th floor resident whose wife, Maria del Pilar Burton, died in January, was the first of the bereaved to lay flowers.

He told the Press Association: “I was just thinking about my wife during the minute’s silence, hoping she’s OK and I got a bit emotional.”

Singers Adele, Stormzy and Marcus Mumford all attended the event, having been vocal supporters of the families affected since the fire.

Earlier, the day’s first service saw a community mosaic unveiled and a gospel choir perform songs including Bridge Over Troubled Water.

A silent march is to take place around the neighbourhood on Thursday evening.

CEREMONY: Marking one year since the blaze with a procession from St Helen’s Church, North Kensington

Holding a 72-second silence in commemmoration