Witnesses: Horror of London fire is ‘like 9/11’
Public rallies to help as at least 12 die in blaze at high-rise apartment
The fire quickly spread through the 24-story apartment building, creating a towering inferno visible from miles away Wednesday as frantic tenants fled — and even jumped — to escape.
The death toll climbed to 12 and will likely go higher, police said, with 74 injured and dozens hospitalized. Officials are still trying to determine the cause of the fire, but a tenants’ group had complained for years about the risk of a fire.
Londoners again had to confront scenes of horror, this time from the blaze, after recent terrorist attacks in Manchester, England, and in London. As many as 600 people lived in the 120 apartments in Grenfell Tower in west London.
One witness, Samira Lamrani, described seeing someone catch a baby dropped from the “ninth or 10th floor” of the apartment building near Notting Hill.
“People were starting to appear at the windows, frantically banging and screaming,” Lamrani told Britain’s Press Association. “The windows were slightly ajar, a woman was gesturing she was about to throw her baby and if somebody could catch her. Somebody did, a gentleman ran forward and managed to grab the baby.”
Jody Martin told the BBC that people were trapped in the building and she heard someone yell: ‘We can’t leave our apartments, the smoke is too bad.’ ”
David Benjamin was sleeping at his girlfriend’s apartment when they heard banging on the door. He looked through the keyhole and saw people running down the hallway.
“Bits of the ceiling were coming off and people were screaming,” Benjamin told British TV. “People on the upper floors were still sleeping, so they probably didn’t even have a clue about what was going on.”
George Clarke, host of a popular TV show about home renovations, told Radio 5 Live that he saw people waving flashlights and cellphone lights from the top floors of the building to grab the attention of rescue workers. Other witnesses spoke of people constructing makeshift ropes out of sheets to escape the flames.
The building, constructed in 1974, was recently upgraded at a cost of $12.8 million, with work finishing in May 2016, according to the building’s management company. Rydon, the British company that did the refurbishing, said in a statement that its work “met all required building control, fire regulation and health and safety standards.”
Britain’s government ordered checks at other apartment towers that had or are going through similar refurbishments, because of concerns that building renovations may have contributed to the spread of the fire.
The Grenfell Action Group, the tenants’ organization, had expressed concerns since 2013 about the testing and maintenance of firefighting equipment and blocked emergency access to the site. “All our warnings fell on deaf ears and we predicted that a catastrophe like this was inevitable,” the group said after the fire broke out, according to the Associated Press.
The public rallied to support those left homeless and to offer help. The Tabernacle Christian Centre, near the scene of the fire, was a frenzy of activity as people brought bags of clothes, food and toys to give to those affected by the blaze.
“People just started coming here” to serve their community, said Derrick Wilson, senior pastor at the center that also is home to a food bank. He said churches in other parts of London were calling him to ask what they could do to help.
“I heard people were throwing babies out of the window. It sounded a bit like 9/11,” Wilson said. “People are coming from all over to help in this time of great tragedy.”
Volunteers divided donations into separate bags that included clothes, baby items and toys. People passing by stopped at the en- trance to ask what they could do to help.
Nikki Brun, one of the volunteers, said after an appeal went out on Facebook, people came from all over to donate, with workers from local businesses coming in on their lunch breaks.
Tobias West, 21, a student, was among those who dropped off donations. “In times like this we have to strive and come together,” he said. “We’re going to do as much as we can to help.”
Tim Burke, helping coordinate assistance at the Latimer Community Church near the Grenfell Tower, said there was an appeal to raise more than $128,000 to help the victims.
“These people have woken up with nothing. They’ve seen their friends die,” he said.
Burke said volunteers were among the first on the scene, and a local hotel offered accommodation to those who lost their apartments. “What you see here is the most amazing response,” he said. “People have driven from all over London and donated.”
“Bits of the ceiling were coming off and people were screaming.” David Benjamin