Anger as fire brigade is blamed over Grenfell Tower blaze

BY YANN TEAR
yann@slpmedia.co.uk

A campaign group set up in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster has condemned what it sees as the scapegoating of firefighters following the publication of a damning report.

The first phase of the Grenfell Tower inquiry findings, which run to 1,000 pages, were officially released yesterday (Wednesday), but some details had been aired before those affected had time to digest the findings and formulate a response, action group Justice4Grenfell (J4G) said.

Sir Martin Moore-Bick, chairman of the inquiry, said he had not intended during the first phase to investigate whether the building complied with regulations, but concluded that there was “compelling evidence” that the external walls did not.

“It is clear that the walls did not resist the spread of fire. On the contrary they promoted it,” he said.

The main findings are that fire service planning and training for such a fire was “gravely inadequate,” with commanders having received no training on combustible cladding or on how to evacuate a tower block with one staircase.

Firefighters are said to have displayed “extraordinary bravery,” but commanders should have recognised earlier that evacuation was needed rather than insisting on a ‘stay put’ policy for residents, and that there would have been fewer fatalities had they done so.

The report also concludes the main reason for the spread of fire, which began with a small electrical fault in a fridge freezer in a fourth-floor flat, was said to have been rain screen panels which acted as fuel.

Insulation boards behind the cladding also helped the spread.

The findings could pave the way for criminal convictions over the deaths of the 72 who perished in the blaze.

Some 36 organisations are thought to have been involved in the construction, refurbishment, maintenance and management of the tower.

Corporate manslaughter charges could also be brought against Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO), the building management company, police have previously said.

But criminal charges will not be considered until after phase two of the inquiry, which could take two more years.

J4G’s first response has been to decry the early leaks and subsequent media emphasis on the firefighters rather than other causes of the disaster.

The group said in a statement: “The leaking of this report to the media has impacted on the ability of the community to have had the time to calmly digest the recommendations made by the inquiry chairman,” the group said in a statement.

“The media has started with an onslaught on the firefighters who attended on the night.

“The fire at Grenfell Tower occurred within a historical background of cuts to public services, deregulation, privatisation, a culture of ignoring the concerns of social housing residents and social inequality. So the inquiry should have begun with this context.

“Instead, the inquiry began with ‘Act Two, Scene 1’ asking details about the fire on that fateful night.

The Phase One stage seems to have been pre-set with a determined route that would lead to a determined outcome – blaming the firefighters.

“The route appears to be one that lets those most accountable, namely government and private companies, off the hook.”

J4G notes recommendations made by the inquiry to improve firefighting equipment, communication systems and evacuation policy, but is unhappy that no mention is made about sprinklers in the recommendations, nor is there a suggested ban on the use of combustible materials on external walls of high-rise buildings.

“Moore-Bick does however touch on the lack of urgency by the government on the removal of combustible cladding from current buildings,” J4G says.

“There are so many parties’ decisions implicated in the lead up to the fire,” J4G says. “The government at all levels, the council, the planning department, KCTMO, building inspectors, the building industry as a whole, architects to contractors and manufacturers and retailers.

“How could they all have failed in their professional responsibilities and in their duties of care, so abysmally?

“If the Inquiry had begun with Act One, Scene One, the chairman’s recommendations would have looked starkly different and the real villains of the piece would have been in the headlines, rather than the firefighters who risked their own lives in a building that no-one should have been living in.

“The inquiry must fully investigate all such issues, in addition to purely practical issues such as what technically started the fire.”

J4G yesterday unveiled three billboards at the Westway to highlight the fact that the recommendations in the Grenfell Tower inquiry Phase One report needs the political will of the government to be implemented.

Grenfell bereaved families, survivors and members of the community gathered with the billboards at Maxilla Walk under the Westway.

The billboards read: “Cover up 72 dead, Never again,” “Grenfell Inquiry Report Recommendations: Government does not have to implement,” and “How come???”

J4G said: “There is nothing on the statute books for recommendations of any public inquiry to be implemented by a government.

These billboards are here because hundreds of other residential buildings in the UK are still covered in flammable cladding.

“The firefighters have been made scapegoats of Phase One while the ‘big’ players seem to have got off scot-free.”

A meeting of survivors and bereaved families was due to be held in the House of Commons last night (Wednesday) to discuss the inquiry report.

The aim was to air concerns and responses to the findings, to see whether they have met expectations and what is now expected of central and local government.