‘I still hear their screams’: Residents near Grenfell split over Government plans to demolish building

By Adrian Zorzut, Local Democracy Reporter

Residents living near Grenfell Tower are split over the future of the building, after the Government appeared to make a long-awaited decision to knock it down.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, who is also Housing Secretary, met relatives and survivors on Wednesday evening, telling them the tower would be dismantled down to ground level.

But in the shadow of the tower yesterday, the community had differing views on whether that was the right call.

Nizare Elogbani, 47, has lived next to Grenfell Tower for most of his life. His sister lived on the 11th floor of the building and narrowly escaped with her family on the night of the fire.

He said: “I walk past it every day. It’s a daily reminder of what happened. It’s the first thing I see coming out of the house and it gives me flashbacks. You can hear people’s voices and their screams.”

He said something had to be done to remember those who perished in the fire, and supported demolition plans so long as it happened once criminal proceedings ended.

He said: “You need to keep it until someone is held responsible for what happened – 72 people died that night, but no one has been charged for it. Someone needs to be held accountable for it.”

He said it was important the Government installed a memorial to replace the building. The Met and the Crown Prosecution Service have said prosecutions will not begin until late 2026.

Irene Miller, 78, has lived on the estate for 51 years. She was in hospital on the night of the fire and remembers trying to get into her flat, but being stopped by police.

She ended up staying the night with her daughter and said she did not want to see the building come down in her lifetime. She said: “I don’t like it coming down. It’s like a memorial for everybody who didn’t make it, who burnt to death in that building.”

Edward Lara, 61, was in his flat near Grenfell Tower with his mother on the night of the fire. The full-time carer, who has called Lancaster West Estate his home for 50 years, remembers seeing smoke billowing out of the tower and people screaming for help.

He said seeing the tower every day ‘brings back memories’ and agrees it should come down. Mr Lara, who lost a friend in the fire, said: “The sooner it comes down, the better. I saw everything: the fire, people screaming, people falling out of their windows.”

The Government has previously said there will be no changes to the site before the eighth anniversary of the disaster in June. 

It is expected more details will be set out by Government by the end of the week. In a previous update, the Government said structural engineering advice remained unchanged ‘in that the building – or that part of it that was significantly damaged – should be carefully taken down’.

A Grenfell Next Of Kin spokesman said the decision around the tower’s future was ‘obviously a very sensitive and difficult’ one.

They said: “For the next of kin of the deceased, that building is a shrine and the death place of their immediate families, their brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, husbands, wives and children – but they understand the hard facts around safety.”

Cllr Elizabeth Campbell, leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, said the future of Grenfell Tower was a decision for the Government. She said: “We know this will be a difficult moment for bereaved family members, survivors and the immediate local community.

“It’s vital that the Government works closely with those affected to understand their concerns and move forward with the decision.

“We await their formal announcement and stand ready to work with the community to support them through whatever comes next.”

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, which Ms Rayner heads, said: “The priority for the Deputy Prime Minister is to meet with and write to the bereaved, survivors and the immediate community to let them know her decision on the future of the Grenfell Tower.

“This is a deeply personal matter for all those affected, and the Deputy Prime Minister is committed to keeping their voice at the heart of this.”

What is left of the tower has stood in place since the fatal fire on June 14, 2017, with a covering on the building featuring a large green heart accompanied by the words ‘forever in our hearts’. 

The final report of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, published in September, concluded the disaster was the result of ‘decades of failure’ by government and the construction industry to act on the dangers of flammable materials on high-rise buildings.

Pictured top: From left, Edward Lara, Irene Miller and Nizare Elogban (Picture: Adrian Zorzut))