Everything you need to know about the Grenfell Tower fire: when, how it started, how many died

An authoritative announcement is expected connected Friday to corroborate the Kensington operation artifact volition beryllium razed to the ground, though not earlier the eighth day of the tragic inferno connected June 14.

Grenfell United, which represents immoderate of the bereaved and survivors of fire, were told of the plans connected Wednesday nighttime by lawman premier curate Angela Rayner.

They person present accused the lawman premier curate of ignoring them and person said she could not springiness a crushed for the tower’s destruction.

A connection read: “She refused to corroborate however galore bereaved and survivors had been spoken to successful the recent, abbreviated four-week consultation.

“But judging from the country unsocial – the immense bulk of whom were bereaved – nary 1 supported her decision. But she claims her determination is based connected our views.”

Kensington and Bayswater MP Joe Powell said the determination “will not for 1 second” alteration immoderate resoluteness to “support the combat for truth, justness and change” connected the backmost of the disaster.

“Grenfell Tower volition ever beryllium successful our hearts arsenic a community,” helium said.

“I cognize the determination to commencement readying for the operation to travel down has not been taken lightly.

“I convey Angela Rayner for her intensive engagement with our assemblage successful caller months.”

The Grenfell Tower, a high-rise societal lodging artifact successful Kensington, caught occurrence connected June 14, 2017.

It had been built successful 1977, but the deadly cladding which caused the occurrence to dispersed was added conscionable years earlier betwixt 2012 and 2016.

The 24-storey gathering consisted of 129 residential flats, and galore residents were dormant erstwhile the occurrence broke retired aboriginal that morning.

Just earlier 1am connected June 14, 2017, an electrical responsibility successful a resident’s fridge-freezer triggered a tiny room occurrence connected the 4th level of the building.

Firefighters arrived connected the country wrong minutes, but the archetypal responders rapidly noticed the occurrence spreading.

Around 15 minutes aft the occurrence broke out, the flames reached the exterior cladding of the gathering and began rapidly ascending the block.

The severity and accelerated dispersed of the occurrence person been attributed to the cladding, which failed to comply with gathering regulations.

While the occurrence continued to spread, residents were initially told to stay successful their apartments and await rescue from the occurrence department.

Official proposal to residents was lone changed astir 2 hours aboriginal erstwhile it was excessively precocious for galore residents trapped connected the precocious floors.

Considered the worst UK residential fire since the Second World War, the blaze burned for astir 60 hours.

Of the victims, 70 died connected the scene, portion 2 aboriginal died successful hospital.

Those who died came from 19 antithetic countries worldwide and brought a wealthiness of stories, skills, jobs, and religions with them.

The youngest unfortunate was an unborn babe called Logan Gomes, who died successful his mother’s womb due to the fact that of the smoke. He was 1 of 19 children who died successful the tragedy.

Two years aft the disaster, an archetypal 2019 study recovered that the tower’s cladding failed to conscionable gathering regulations, starring to the “profoundly shocking” occurrence spread. It besides criticised the occurrence section for instructing residents to stay successful their apartments.

Architects, companies involving successful the disastrous refubishment, and the section assembly successful Kensington and Chelsea were each held to blasted successful the decision of the nationalist inquiry.

Police and prosecutors said past May that investigators would request until the extremity of 2025 to implicit their enquiry and volition record immoderate imaginable transgression charges the extremity of 2026.

Ms Rayner’s predecessor, Michael Gove, besides had plans to demolish the gathering but pulled retired – and the ruins inactive basal arsenic a heart-breaking reminder of the incident.

The lawman PM has present said it volition beryllium demolished though not until June astatine the earliest. She said that a memorial volition beryllium erected connected the site.

Further details volition beryllium announced connected Friday, February 7.