declared a major incident —— mayor. we can speak with tim downie, also watching the blaze, who is on the phone. what have you seen, what have you heard? i have pretty much watched it from 2am, from when we we re watched it from 2am, from when we were first alerted to the sheer volume of sirens going off and the helicopters that were here, and i have just seen the fire absolutely rip through it and just engulfed the whole building. now it is pretty much burnt out, the entire thing. i mean, i have never seen anything like that in all of the years i have lived here. just the scale of it is pretty extraordinary. we are just seeing at the moment the weather camera shot which shows the plume of smoke across camera shot which shows the plume of smoke across west camera shot which shows the plume of smoke across west london. are you getting any indications of whether there are people inside, how many people might be inside? nine none whatsoever. i have heard there are people still trapped inside. from

very early on, i heard people shouting from very high up. ijust desperately hope these people managed to get out. itjust seems so all—consuming, the fire, i don't even know how the fire services are even know how the fire services are even beginning to deal with it. it isjust, even beginning to deal with it. it is just, you start up at absolutely extraordinary. —— it isjust... absolutely extraordinary. access seems so absolutely extraordinary. access seems so difficult with the narrow streets. let's come from the other way. we were trying to calculate how many flats there might be in the building, given it is 27 stories, maybe 200 or more. that means many more people. no indication how many men have got out, how many have been evacuated into the latimer christian centre or else were? know, many people have been milling about, there have been groups of people

taking water and clothing and things like that —— no. they have been taken down to the cordon and taken by police. nothing definite on how many got out. you would hope a huge amount, if not everyone, has got out, but it is just so incredibly difficult to say because we have been kept back. the building itself has been covered in panels, from a recent refurbishment, a lot have been slipping off, just falling. a great deal as soon as the fire hits them. it has been difficult to get anywhere near it, let alone people coming out. you know people in there? i don't, i know some of the people in the other flats on the other states and they know people who live there as well but tha nkfully who live there as well but thankfully i don't know anyone from there. thank you so much for coming through to us. no problem. i think we can speak to our correspondent andy moore, who has been since the call came into the fire service about three and a half

hours ago. andy, what is the latest? well, we now know it has been declared a major incident, we heard that from the mayor of london. as you can see, the building is still well alight, the fire service tells us well alight, the fire service tells us it is alight from the seventh to the 27th floor and you can see on the 27th floor and you can see on the left—hand side of the building, you can see the hydraulic platform, which we don't think is manned, with the hose on the corner of the building. about one hour ago we saw a person briefly come to the window once or twicejust a person briefly come to the window once or twice just about where the hoseis once or twice just about where the hose is — we haven't seen that person since. we believe it was probably a resident. we understand that the fire service have been inside the building using breathing apparatus and so we are hoping that person has been rescued. as two people trapped, people injured, all we have at the moment is the

information that a number of people have been treated for a range of injuries. in the early stages, police said two people were treated for the effects of breathing and smoke. now we know that there are more but we don't know the extent of them. there are fears, as you can see it debris falling from the building, that it might collapse. people are being pushed back. the fire itself is debating a little perhaps simply because a lot of the combustible material has already been burnt. you can seejust how blackened and charred the outside of the building is now. we can't see firefighters going into the building. our view is obscured, as you can see, by a building. our view is obscured, as you can see, bya building in building. our view is obscured, as you can see, by a building in front of us. but we have seen posers on the building, sometimes on the right—hand side of the building, so we assume that there are people manning the hoses and that firefighters are very close to the

building, although there is the risk of it collapsing and certainly the risk of fiery debris falling on top of them, so firefighters taking enormous risks, presumably to try to rescue people who may be trapped inside. as you said earlier, we are hearing horrible stories people a p pa re ntly hearing horrible stories people apparently calling from inside the building on their mobiles, a p pa re ntly building on their mobiles, apparently saying to family and friends that they might not make it, and other people flashing phones to try to indicate where they are. we have no confirmation of that, but it was coming to us from someone who believed they had it first hand. and the extra problem that the fire was in the fire exits, in the sta i rwells, in the fire exits, in the stairwells, and very hard for the firefighters to get through narrow streets, ha rd to firefighters to get through narrow streets, hard to get through and as you say fiery debris falling on them all the time. yes, certainly some of the residents, that it is a maze of narrow roads and it is sometimes

difficult to get access. as you know, the streets of london are quite busy anyway. there is certainly a road below us. some cars had to be cleared out of the way for the emergency vehicles to get through. we know there is something like 40 through. we know there is something like a0 fire engines here and 200 firefighters and we have seen ambulances, lots of ambulances arriving. we have also had their statement now from the fire brigade. we have had a statement from the assista nt we have had a statement from the assistant commissioner dan bailey and he said firefighters are working extremely hard in difficult conditions to tackle this fire. he didn't say whether they were inside the building or not but you would presume if they have that breathing apparatus that they were inside the building. he went on to say this is a large and serious incident and we have deployed numerous resources and specialist appliances. the fire actually started just before iam — and you can see this column of smoke

rising into the morning air. fortu nately rising into the morning air. fortunately there is not a strong wind at the moment. that would have made the firefighting very much more difficult. that column of smoke rising almost vertically into the sky and then drifting away. i can see a large grey cloud that will be viewed from anybody in london and they will be able to see this fire and the results of this fire from miles around. we have been trying to calculate, given that it seems to be 27 stories high, how many flats there might be and how many people might have been inside. have you heard anything from local people or firefighters or police to indicate a number? i can't give you a number. as you say, i have heard perhaps 200 flats, perhaps 200 people. these are just estimates, really, of the numbers who would have been inside.

you have to remember, when this fire started, it was just before 1am, so most people presumably would have been at home in their flats in most people presumably would have been at home in theirflats in bed, so it would have had probably the maximum occupancy rate. they would have been more people in the block of flats then there would be at any other time, so that will obviously bea other time, so that will obviously be a matter of a lot of concern for the emergency services. and we would be remiss if we didn't mention it but of course we only have one side of the suggestions at the moment, these blog post from a pressure group, what appears to be a local action group, suggesting a major fire at this tower was only averted in 2013 when some residents spotted power surges they say caused by fa u lty power surges they say caused by faulty wiring and they say they have been complaining for some time about what they called dangerous living conditions at the block. they say the neglect of health and is the legislation, of course safety record by the landlords. 0bviously legislation, of course safety record by the landlords. obviously we want to hear the landlord's side to that,

which don't have that the moment. that's right. i understand the tower block is owned by other local authority. i understand also that there was a major... repair of the block, that it was refurbished from top to bottom fairly recently, probably since 2013. i haven't got the dates on that. but a lot of work was done on the block. it may be that some of the concerns dating back to 2013 were addressed in some way but we will find out about that no doubt in the fullness of time. and, andy, just for people who have justjoined us, we should make clear, because it will be on everybody‘s mind, that everybody possible has been moved back from the block — clearly firefighters and police are concerned that the block may collapse? yes, that is a concern. when we arrived, we were

slightly closer to the building and we we re slightly closer to the building and we were pushed back by the police with some urgency. they were concerned that the building might collapse. that is not based on any structural assessment of any sort. it is simply that the police are exercising maximum caution. they thought that there was a possibility. there was fiery ash and debris falling around the tower block so it made sense to move people as far away as possible, and there must be concerned for the building, you can see for yourself, as the fire has ripped through from top to bottom. we can't see the other side from here but as far as i could see when we arrived, the fire was raging just as fiercely on the other side of the building. so there must be concerns that the building could collapse. we don't know if it will not. but of course it is a fear it least. the fire service have been describing it i am sure as alight

from the second to the 27th floor, though they did talk about one corner not being alight, and as you say the fire appeared to be in the fire exit, and in the stairwells, so thank you very much indeed. we will come back to you. i think we can speak now with abdul, who has been watching. do you live locally?” watching. do you live locally?|j live watching. do you live locally?” live in wembley but i drove on the aao by the building at around 2:30am andi aao by the building at around 2:30am and i was going towards south london to drop some friends, and i was concerned because the fire was absolutely horrific and scary. and i saw the whole building is in flames from all sides. very dark black smoke coming out of the building. i heard on the radio, on bbc london radio, a lady who was offering some

help, and she gave directions to latimer christian centre, so on my way back from south london, around 3am, 3:30am, i decided to go to the latimer christian centre. the roads are blocked, it was not very easy to get through. people have parked their cars get through. people have parked theircars ina get through. people have parked their cars in a very inappropriate way, which raised my concerns that emergency services would not have a proper access. abdul, we have heard their having problems with narrow streets anyway. if you been to the centre, do you have a sense of how many people have been evacuated, how many people have been evacuated, how many got out? no, i have seen a lot of people on the streets, but i have seen the police treating, the paramedics, sorry, treating at least

five to six people just outside latimer road station. i have packs or bottles of water in the back of my car, and we offered it to the policeman who was relieved when he received the water and he went straightaway and gave it to the people on the streets who, apparently, are being treated from smoke... and i don't know to what extent of treatment they were getting. i have seen a gentleman, a young quyr getting. i have seen a gentleman, a young guy, who was maybe 18 or 19 yea rs young guy, who was maybe 18 or 19 years old, and he was in shock, in tea rs. years old, and he was in shock, in tears. and apparently his family, or family members, live in the building and he was unable to get through to them on the phone — he was hysteric, basically. the police were doing a lot of effort to push everyone back

and try to ask them not to come any closer. and instead of the people who are there, instead of standing and filming and taking pictures, they can at least offer some help, especially those who live around, by taking someone in or offering water or snacks orfood or taking someone in or offering water or snacks or food or whatever, because there are a lot of people on the street and i couldn't get a count, but i can see paramedics and police are exerting a lot of effort. thank you very much indeed for coming through to us. we can speak now to stewart, a postman in the area. excuse me. what can you tell us? i was the postman yea rs can you tell us? i was the postman years ago. i popped down there because i am local. i went down with a couple of bottles of water to try

to help but i couldn't get close, i was stuck on the aao on the northern roundabout and i just stayed for a good hour to watch it, to be honest, it is shocking. it is a horrible scene. i have it is shocking. it is a horrible scene. | have never it is shocking. it is a horrible scene. l have never seen it is shocking. it is a horrible scene. i have never seen anything like it. this it went up in about ten minutes. it's quite astonishing. firefighters we re it's quite astonishing. firefighters were the major trouble getting

through. they have loads of origins. to breathe falling from the sky. -- debrided falling from the sky. it's just unbelievable. to think there are people in there. somebody said they saw someone jump. honestly, it's indescribable, is the worst tragedy. in the history of west london, anyway. it is indeed a terrible scene. we have had these reports but they seem to be first—hand reports that people have been calling from inside the building on their mobile phones suggesting to family and friends they might not make it, other people calling out to help, flashing their phones. i don't know if you are seeing the same pictures. there is a

hydraulic platform up there on the left. we understand that is spraying water and it is unmanned. wejust don't know what the chances are of other people getting out. the fire service as saying the block is a light from the second to the 27th floor but one corner of the building might not be a light. we lost stewart there. we can speak tojodie martin who was also in the area. just tell us. you have been involved in some of the rescue work.” just tell us. you have been involved in some of the rescue work. i got there the same time that the fire engines got there. i heard the fire engines got there. i heard the fire engines were struggling to get in because the road is blocked off due to gas works on bramley road and it's a bit of a dogleg to quite tight so i ran from my apartment through a pedestrianised area to get to the building. i ran around the

building just to try and see what was going on because originally the fire was on the east side of the building. i have a look at that and i could see it on the second floor, moving swiftly up the floors. then when they pulled up, they opened up and started pulling up hoses and stuff. i grabbed an axe and ran around the building looking for a fire escape. there were none that i could see. what i did notice was the bridge connecting an adjacent building on the second floor, i went up building on the second floor, i went upa set building on the second floor, i went up a set of stairs and went in through the window of somebody‘s apartment. just shouting to anyone who got to the corridor, to people in the corridor. and we worked out which way was the way out. we handed them off to the fire brigade. they

started coming up the stairs at that point but they were staying on the second level for quite a long time. they were trying to work out the layout the building. the smoke was quite bad on the second floor slab and retreated back out the way i came. there was just screaming at people in the building, trying to wa ke people in the building, trying to wake people up, telling them to get out of the building. then an officer arrived, the commanding officerfrom the fire brigade. i explained to him we re the fire brigade. i explained to him were could see people that he might be able to get with the ladders. 0ne was on the actual bridge but. they got somebody out on the fourth floor. i got the impression that the fire brigade were reluctant to go up any higher than the fourth floor, just because of the carnage of the fire, the ferocity of it. it is just

like an inferno. when i was running around the bottom of the building, there were bits of the building falling off all around me. i scald of my shin on a hot piece of metal that had fallen off the building. just screaming at people, get out, get out. they were screaming that they couldn't. the corridors will full of smoke. as i was watching and sort of stepping back as the fire was getting bigger and bigger, sort of stepping back as the fire was getting biggerand bigger, i sort of stepping back as the fire was getting bigger and bigger, isaw the fire brigade inside. but only up until the fourth floor. i don't think they went higher than the fourth floor. it would have been impossible. then the police eventually came and started asking civilians to move back. i moved back and handed the axe back to the fire brigade and then i've just been

watching people in their windows flashing their phones and watching those apartments get engulfed in fla mes those apartments get engulfed in flames and smoke. my opinion, there is going to be a lot of dead people in that building because they couldn't have got out. the second top window, i saw a family of three in there and slowly i watched the smoke get worse and worse, clamouring to the windows, you could see the man tried to wave blankets to get oxygen in. then slowly, one ata time, to get oxygen in. then slowly, one at a time, they have not been at the window. also in the top corner, there was a lady screaming for help. her whole apartment was burned, glasses gone. she didn't get out. my

partner saw somebody fall. people on the outside of the building. i saw a lady on the middle section of the window holding her toddler out screaming for help. it's a disaster. my screaming for help. it's a disaster. my opinion is there are tens of casualties if not up to 100. there is no way people could have got out of there. the smoke was too thick. i experienced it myself. all my clothes smell of smoke, mice skin smells of smoke and i was only on the second floor very briefly. as i was talking to the people from outside the building, they were saying, we can't get out. the smoke is too thick. i guess from their perspective, they are looking at all the fire brigades going, it's ok, they will put the fire out from the

building, one whole side of the building, one whole side of the building is on fire and its slowly creeping around the building and that's what i've been witnessing. this apartment of people after apartment of people slowly at the wind windows screaming for help. i am looking at it now. the whole building is engulfed in flames. there was one small section that is covered in smoke. the rest of the building, its gone. covered in smoke. the rest of the building, it's gone. that is fa ntastically building, it's gone. that is fantastically distressing to be anywhere near. it is bad enough to be looking at it. you did a topjob, more than many of us would have had the guts to do. we were able to get an estimate about how many people might still be inside or coming out that from the other way, how many people might have escaped?”

that from the other way, how many people might have escaped? i saw seven people come out myself and i was downstairs in the foyer. the first a0 minutes. i saw an old lady, an old man come out and i saw people walking down the street with bags which means a few people got out but not the amount you would expect to see if there were fire alarms. there are no fire alarms going off. people still been sleeping. banging on doors and screaming at windows. 0ne of the firemen had a speakerphone and was screaming at the building, telling people if they can make their way to the stairs, do so. they told my friend they are safer in their apartments but when the fire brigade looked around the other side of the building, i think they

quickly changed their mind they started making announcements at the building, if you can make your way to the fire escapes, please do scope —— please do so in a timely manner. and here we are. the building is cracking, there is snapping and cracking. i can see straight through the building on the edges. now you can see straight throughout the other side. everything has been burned out. i wouldn't have had the guts to go up any further than the second floor. even with breathing apparatus, the flames are so big. i think the health and safety of the fire brigade would have been to stand back. after a0 minutes, there probably 60 fire officers, most of them on the outside of the building. either that many wanted to go inside

and they wouldn't have been safe to do so. after all you have been through and all you have done, thank you so much forgiving hours your time. thank you so much. much more to come on this. this major incident in west london. the mera blunden has declared a major incident. this is the grenfell tower, a light now for almost four hours, we think, in west london. more information for you any time on the bbc website. we will be back. hello, there. the middle of the week is going to bring a peak in the temperatures. you could describe it as very warm across many parts of the country. especially across southern areas of england and wales you could describe it as hot. some sunny spells around, but that's not quite the case everywhere because on the satellite picture you can see the cloud that's been rolling in from the atlantic.

this will be clipping into northern ireland and western scotland. so here there will be more cloud through the day and it will be breezy. some splashes of rain at times, especially to the far north—west. there could be the odd shower in the afternoon in england and wales. further south, long spells of sunshine and that's where we will have the highest temperatures. for the middle part of wednesday afternoon, maybe the odd shower over northern england, but 2a degrees in leeds and manchester. towards the south—east, lots of sunshine and easily up to 27—28. always a little bit cooler towards the coast. we could have 18 degrees in plymouth. fine and sunny across the south—west of england and much of wales. could be the odd shower, especially over high ground. the vast majority staying dry. cooler towards the coast. for northern ireland more cloud, but the day is by no means a washout. dry weather, mainly patchy rain into the north—west. more rain in the northern and western parts of scotland. for eastern scotland, some sunshine and a fair degree of warmth as well.

through wednesday night it will turn quite muggy across eastern areas. humid air still in place. temperatures not dropping far. 0ut west, a change. the band of rain working through northern ireland and into scotland, wales. this is associated with a cold front and as that moves in from the west on thursday it will start to introduce cooler and fresher aironce again. still a pretty warm day in east anglia and the south—east, with some humidity holding on. but as the weather front continues to move eastwards it will sweep the real heat and humidity away. temperatures in most places on thursday afternoon about 16—19 degrees. there will be sunshine, but there will also be hefty showers across parts of the north—west. then we'll have some showers again on friday, especially in parts of wales, northern ireland, western scotland. some drier and brighter weather further east. still up to 23 degrees in the south—east and into the weekend it looks like the heat and humidity will return in the south.

always cooler further north, with a little bit of rain. this is bbc news. i'm kasia madera. our top stories: a massive fire in a west london tower block. many people are being treated for injuries. this is the live scenes. we will speak with our correspondent with the very latest. hello and welcome to bbc news. we will bring you the very latest on this developing story that has taken place through the night with hundreds of firefighters in london working to rescue people trapped in a massive blaze that has engulfed a high—rise block of flats. this is the image live now in west london.