Disaster response

SIR – The lack of an effective coordinated response in the immediate aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy suggests that Britain ought to reestablish a civil defence service to deal with disasters.

Our Civil Defence Service was disbanded in 1945. In Italy, however, the Dipartimento Protezione Civile has the task of coordinating timely responses to natural disasters. There are structures in place linking all the relevant authorities at a national level. The service has 600,000 active volunteers. Steve Porter

Wallingford, Oxfordshire