Risk of tower debris closes two Tube lines

TWO Tube lines were partly suspended yesterday after fire officers working at Grenfell Tower warned that debris could fall on to the tracks.

It happened as search teams reached “all the way to the top” of the tower to inspect how dangerous it is.

The Hammersmith and City line was suspended between Edgware Road and Hammersmith because of the blaze, Transport for London said.

Coupled with planned engineering work, the safety concerns meant the Circle Line was closed.

A sign at Ladbroke Grove about the closure was later changed to remove details about the safety of Grenfell Tower. Transport for London said the change had been made “at the request of the London Fire Brigade”.

But the brigade said the lines had been temporarily closed because of a “short-term risk of some debris falling on to the tracks”.

Fire search and rescue teams yesterday reached “all the way to the top” of the tower, Commander Stuart Cundy, of the Metropolitan Police, said.

Mr Cundy also appealed to anyone who may have escaped from the building but who has not yet come forward to make themselves known.

“It is important for families that we do absolutely everything in there to find their loved ones but we have gone to the top of the tower,” he said.

Meanwhile, a fireman who climbed to the 15th floor as the fire was burning has told how he feared the 24-storey block would collapse like the World Trade Centre.

Leon Whitley, 34, described the experience as “hellish” and said he still hears the screams from people trapped as flames tore through the building.

A fire brigade spokesman said they were working to secure the debris near the Tube lines so that they could be reopened as soon as possible.