the fire service we re concerns raised.were checking in the day and there we re were checking in the day and there were internal issues, so with a combination of that and the external cladding, it was found that it wasn't safe. how are you going to fund all of this? do you know what, at the moment, we are focussed on getting scared tired people into accommodation, safe and secure, we are not concerned about money at this moment, we are going to act. later on we'll have those conversations with government, we'll wa nt conversations with government, we'll want support but it's not for right now, we have just want support but it's not for right now, we havejust got want support but it's not for right now, we have just got to act. so you don't have any idea of the cost at this stage? we don't. we had to just get a plan in place to move people as quickly as possible and people, resident safety was the priority, not cost. 0k. georgia gould, thank you very much for taking the time to talk to us. much for taking the time to talk to

the fire service are... you could stop it spreading by spending £2 more... ly maitlis conducted with theresa may last friday seemed to unfairly lay all blame for the fire personally with the prime minister. the sound of silence. how huw edwards occupied himself for the first four minutes of tuesday's news at ten. in the very early hours of monday morning, the sound of multiple police sirens was heard again on the streets of london. and the bbc‘s overnight news service reported the facts, as they became clear. we start with breaking news this hour. a number of people have been injured in north london after a vehicle collided with pedestrians. the muslim council of britain has said that worshippers were hit by a van as they left prayers at the finsbury park mosque. 0ne eyewitness has told the bbc that at least three people were seriously injured. some hours later, it emerged that one man, makram ali, died in the attack and that another, darren osborne, had been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and terror offences. before that, though, a number of viewe

fire services have investigated the building and told us investigated the building and told us they were fire measures in place. can we talk about your constituency in salford ? in place. can we talk about your constituency in salford? nine tower blocks are being assessed. what is happening and what was the process in terms of fire safety assessments and residents, what they are being told? all housing associations and local authorities have been asked to talk to the government. looking at specifications, and the building control department, they have made the decision that they think the panels are the same as those used at grenfell and likely to be similar. they are taking them off the buildings immediately. you have made the adjustment, not the fire department? the fire department has assessed the safety internally of all buildings, so that is why we don‘t have that situation in camden. we have reassured them that the standards are there. all nine blocks have got 24—hour guard monitoring every floor. all of the other safety measures, fire doors and the other things that will usually b

the fire service have d o ne safety of the fact the fire service have done safety checks annually i amerent from this time last year. if services are shut off it becomes impossible and presumably people who have refused to leave so far will be forced to leave. i will, to leave so far will be forced to leave. iwill, personally. iwill personally leave if the gas and electricity are shut off. and i will be ready. you save have a friend to stay with which is great, will you be up to stay with us when the duration of any work that is carried out even if it goes into weeks? yes, down in chalk farm. and my daughter has somewhere to go, too. she was told when she registered in the leisure centre behind us that they had said to her that the utilities would be cut off in the blocks. we have had not —— not had confirmation of that but presumably that will force out the people who have said the council so far they do not want to leave. earlier when we had keith doyle's report, the prime minister says the government is working closely with camden council to help the people who have had to leave the

ok, the fire service said it is not safe and i respect that.ded about that. but in view of the fact that the fire service have done safety checks annually, i am service have done safety checks annually, iam not service have done safety checks annually, i am not sure what's different from this time last year. but if services are going to be shut off it will be impossible. we have been told people who have refused to leave so far will be removed. been told people who have refused to leave so far will be removedlj been told people who have refused to leave so far will be removed. i will leave so far will be removed. i will leave if the gas and electricity is shut off and i will be ready. you say you have a friend to stay with. will you be able to stay with that tra nsfer will you be able to stay with that transfer any duration of work, even if that goes into weeks and months. yes. and my daughter, she has somewhere to go to. today is armed forces day. more than 300 events are taking place across the country to celebrate the work of our armed force

and that's what the fire services have told us.ery closely with the fire services. we're in constant communication with them. it's really their advice that counts on this. if it comes to the point where people really, really won't leave, that is last resort — the last thing i want to do is force people out of their homes. and the conversations i've been having the resident in the building is they are willing to work with us, and i'm going to have those conversations again tonight. i think the most important thing is we were with them. if those buildings aren't safe, if it comes to that, we will work with the fire services on it. is there a deadline? it's an emerging picture. the most important thing is we also have people awake on those blocks going up and down. and when i first had the conversation with the fire services, when they said to me that it wasn't safe, they were clear that it wasn't safe to spend a night there, when the whole block was sleeping. where we have residents, we are making sure we are continuing to knock on t

what was different here, very different, is that the fire service, the local fire service found that should have already been in place in the towers and as a result of that, they have made this quite correct decision. so your understanding at present is that the other tower block will beings have not yet had the local fire service checks, which would get them to the point of saying we cannot guarantee the safety. that phrase seems to be the keyissue, safety. that phrase seems to be the key issue, the local fire safety officer saying we cannot guarantee the safety of people in the buildings. but it would not be unreasonable to assume that if any building that is clad in that material, no—one can guarantee their safety, can they? the logic would be to re m ove safety, can they? the logic would be to remove people from the other buildings as a precaution. allow me to be very clear on this. in those other buildings, first of all they have all had their cheque was and is. the first thing that happens if a test result comes back as negative, the local council, the landlord, and the fire sa

as you can see, the building is still well alight, the fire service tells us well alight, the fire services 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,

the fire service said that would not give a guarantee of safety. need to have four fire engines outside of each block. they said that was not possible. there was nothing be me could do collectively, we have been working closely together, could do that know to keep people safe and that night. so we had to make the decision to move them out. we like to do things properly, we would have loved to have had a proper meeting, had those conversations, but we had to act fast to keep people safe. georgia gould, the leader of camden council there. a story i have been eating since i arrived here today is how people were finding out on the news that the blocks here on the chalcot estate were going to be evacuated. people have been telling me how they started to hear this. they went downstairs to speak to wardens, security guards, who told them, no, nothing going on. you can go back upstairs. then they kept coming downstairs and sing, but the news as saying that the tower blocks will be evacuated. they were then told, no, nothing happening. then in the early hou

i spoke to the fire service at five o'clock.w that the blocks were not say. at that point, it is friday night, you are talking about 4000 people. i asked night, you are talking about 4000 people. iasked if night, you are talking about 4000 people. i asked if there night, you are talking about 4000 people. iasked if there is night, you are talking about 4000 people. i asked if there is anything we can do to keep those blocks safe? can we pay for fire engines outside all of the blocks. we will do anything to keep people in overnight. they said there was nothing we can do to guarantee garin —— resident safety that night. given the circumstances we are in, i thought we had to act swiftly. to be clear, two days ago i remember reading the statement, you announced 20 47 fire safety patrols. you considered the possibility of paying fire crews to stay outside the tower blocks overnight. but the fire service worst thing that would not give a guarantee of safety. they said what you would need is for outside that block. they did not have th

we've had statements now from the fire service, from the ambulance service and from the police.adly that there will be fatalities. they talked about dealing with an unprecedented fire. from the ambulance service, we have had that updated statement saying they're dealing with, they took more than 50 cas olts to five different hospitals and we've had a very brief statement from the police saying that they were sent to assist the fire brigade in and the london ambulance service. they say they confirm also there have been a number of fatalities and a number of other people they say are receiving medical care and they've also set—up a casualty bureau. the fire still birding and pictures are merging of people who may have been trapped in the blaze. you mention the casualty bureau, the numberfor mention the casualty bureau, the number for anyone concerned about a loved one, they should contact the number below. we will take advantage of you being near the scene, you have been observing this throughout the morning, the cordon around the building, there has been a lot of talk about the s

that is what the fire services have told us.e to work very closely with the fire services. we are in co nsta nt with the fire services. we are in constant communication with them. and if it comes to the point where people really will not leave, the last resort, the last thing i want to do is force people out of their homes. the conversations i've been having with residents is that they are willing to work with us. i'm going to have those conversations again tonight. i think the most important thing is that we work with them. if those buildings are not safe... is that a deadline? it is an emerging picture. the most important thing is that we have people who are awake on those blocks going up and down and when i first had the conversation with the fire services, when they first said it wasn't safe they were clear that it was not safe to spend might then when the whole blog was speaking. where we have residents we are continuing to knock on their door, i am sure it is destructive for them, just keep having the conversation again an

bottom to the top on one side of it, and we watched as the fire moved across the building and we heard sirens, of course, as emergency serviceso get there. then we moved onto the street and we have been watching the fire from about 500 metres away for the last couple of hours. we have seen some evidence of life — people blinking lights within the building —and, as blinking lights within the building — and, as your correspondent said, there is a hydraulic platform that has gone up towards what could be an area of the building where people could be actively inside. we saw a person a5 minutes ago on the 11th floor standing at the window with his hands, or her hands, over her ears, maybe the phone. so, i have also spoken with people on the ground who have come out of the building on their own accord are not evacuated per se, but they escaped from the building —3 families, obviously shaken up with few belongings, with blankets and water, who came down the stairs. that was a while ago. from what we understand we are hearing that the stairs are no longer safe for people to come out of the building using the stairs. so, just to be cl

they feel, in connection with the fire service, that these blocks cannot be guaranteed as safe. to have this disruption than better to have this disruption than be in better to have this disruption than beina better to have this disruption than be in a block that really isn't fit for you to be staying in at the moment? yes, so it definitely isn't safe to have people being evacuated because of fire doors that do not meet regulations. but it is a bit unfortunate for someone like me, who has a four—year—old daughter. unfortunate for someone like me, who has a four-year-old daughter. what concerns have you had about your home, up until now? i have not had any concerns. it was only since the g re nfell any concerns. it was only since the grenfell fire that i realised that there wasn't any safety doors or fire alarms or sprinklers to put out fires, if there was a fire. and that cladding as well. and, of course, the cladding. how long do you expect to be out of your home with your daughter? they said between two and four weeks, is what they have been telling the residents. thank you ve

in some cases it is possible to take mitigating action and the fire service are content that the blocks in others it has been necessary for people to move out on a temporary basis, that is what happened in camden last night. most living in these blocks have been back to get enough for an extended stay somewhere else, even as others argue there is no need to leave. 0ur reporter amy cole is in north london. 0ver over the course of the day, we have seen a steady stream of people going in and out of the leisure centre as they have been registering themselves and trying to find out more information from camping council. it is fair to say there has been a lot of anger and frustration among the residents who were woken up among the residents who were woken up by among the residents who were woken up by two, three o'clock this morning and were told to pack their bags and hastily leave their flats. many have wondered why that could not have been done this morning or why they could not have been given more time. camden council say they we re more time. camden council say they were told by fire of

fire service is helping us out today. of the night. more than 100 police officers. sadiq khan. we have got some technical issues. we will try to resolve those and go back to sadiq khan. london police say it may be the case that there are still people and accounted for in the block. we could hear from sadiq khan again. firefighters and emergency services running towards the fire, running towards the danger, whilst encouraging others to run away. we know that in number of people have died. the commander has given the figures that we have. i am afraid it is likely that the figures are likely to go up. we also know that a number of people have been taken to hospitals. the commander from number of people have been taken to hospitals. the commanderfrom london and blood service will tell you more about that. if you are somebody who is worried about so many who may have been affected by the fire please ring the met casualty bureau. if you are somebody who lives in the building and has left safely please let us know you are safe.

and also the fire service needs to have enough resources that they can do regular checks and make sure that all the work done by the contractors hasn't compromised the fire safety. but above all there needs to be sprinklers. it is so heartbreaking for me to look back on what i said at the time, when the coroner said what he said about lakanal house, and see we must learn lessons so that this does not happen again, and to see once again, fire starts in a flat, and its place, and people are told to stay in their flats, and they lose their lives, and here it seems to be on a bigger scale. jeremy corbyn is calling for the government to make a statement in the house of commons tomorrow, even though the house of commons is not sitting because of the shambles that the government zone, the government should still make a statement in the house of commons. and we want to make sure that the council will be given the resources and the hospitals will be given the resources needed to look after the survivors and then we must have an enquiry to learn the lessons of what happened in lakanal house, has

and those cuts to the fire service have meant there are 11,000 fewer firefighters, the public sectorap is hitting recruitment and retention right across the public sector. what the tragedy of grenfell tower has exposed is the disastrous effect of austerity. i urge the prime minister to come up with the resources needed to test and remove cladding, sprinklers, properly fund the fire service and the police, so that all of our communities can truly feel safe in their own homes. mr speaker, this disaster must be a wake—up call. the cladding of tower blocks did not start under this government. it did not start under the previous coalition government. the cladding of tower blocks began under a blair government. that is why i say to the right honourable gentleman, this should be an issue that, across this house, we recognise is a matter that has been developing over decades, is a matter that has occurred under governments of both colours, under councils of all political persuasions, and is something i would hope we would sayjust come together and ensure that we get to the answers of why thi

of this, that we find out exactly what happened. —— the fire service are looking at what the cause ofgovernment and the coroner said you can stop this with a sprinkler system in every block. and the government has taken action on the recommendations of the coroner's report. but what we need to do in relation to this incident, to this horrifying fire, is to make sure that we get to the bottom of why is fire took place, what happened, why did it spread so unexpectedly and so ferociously. but we know gavin barwell sat on a report from last october, that he should have looked at. he knew about these recommendations then. the government acted on recommendations from the coroner's report. but what we need to do is make sure that information to this fire we do find out what caused the fire. —— in relation to this fire. now that will be done. the fire service will make a report. the fire service will look at what it was that immediately happened, but beyond that, the public inquiry will get to the wider issues of responsibility in relation to this. around the country there are 4000 other high

my understanding is the fire service and the building research establishment have obviously, and b arehe cause of the fire and any contributory factors, they are testing the cladding on the building, and they expect to make the results of this public in the next i think a8 hours. anne—marie trevelyan. anne-marie trevelyan. thank you mr speaker, can my honourable friend confirmed that firefighters who attended this traumatic scene will get the psychological support they receive in the time ahead and would she commit telling us how that will be set up for them? my honourable friend has raised an important issue which the leader of the opposition also touched on and i can confirm that support and counselling will be available and there will be further up available and there will be further up dates to the house on the response to the grenfell tower fire and that will be an issue to be included. yvette cooper. further to the previous question the cladding on the tower is a standard rubber thatis on the tower is a standard rubber that is available for sale, i don't understand why the prime

a little more detail about what the fire service is saying... . a r?’r‘? 55??? 5e 5'5? 5 555455; 554555555. . .. . a very r5’r‘5 55??? 5e 5'55 5 5'55'555 55455555. . .. . a very 7% problem that they is a very specific problem that they have identified with these blocks, and that is why they are being evacuated, or police forces, sorry, fire services across the country can come to the conclusion about blogs across the country. and then we are talking about tens of thousands of people. —— about blocks. i know the pa rt of people. —— about blocks. i know the part of london where these blocks are. the fire service could have identified sally apart from the cladding in the specific buildings that have made them come to the conclusion that they are said. —— identify something. this was not an issue two weeks ago. but we had had g re nfell tower. issue two weeks ago. but we had had grenfell tower. precisely. but now they could be going into these blocks and finding other deficiencies with these buildings that cause them to be at risk. if that cause t

the fire service will make a report. the fire service will make a report.ake a report. the fire service will look at what it was not immediately happened. but beyond that, the public enquiry will get to the wider issues of responsibility in relation to this. there are 4000 other high—rise blocks, there are many, other high—rise blocks, there are any other high—rise blocks, there are many, many other residents tonight wondering what kind of precautions you will take. when will you be able to tell them they are sleek —— faith when they go to sleep in their beds? the government is doing everything in its power to ensure that they are safe. we have identified those buildings and now and over the weekend, people are going in and inspecting those buildings. we will do everything in our power to make sure people are safe. does the culture need to change now? does it have to be a culture where you stop putting health and safety first? what we need to do is ensure that immediately people have the support they need in order to deal with what isa they need in order to

many engines and machinery and fire service from neighbouring fire services helping us neighbouring firendon ambulance service, more than 100 paramedics helping out during the course of the night. more than 100 police officers. it's worth reminding ourselves when there are these tragic fires, these emergencies, there are literally emergency services, firefighters running towards the fire, running towards the danger whilst encouraging others to runaway. we do know that a number of people have died i'm afraid and the commander has given you the figures that we have. i'm afraid it's likely that the figures are going to go up. we also know that a number of people have been ten to hospitals. the gold commanderfor the have been ten to hospitals. the gold commander for the ambulance service will be telling you more about that. cani will be telling you more about that. can ijust will be telling you more about that. can i just say this? if you are somebody who is worried about somebody who is worried about somebody who is worried about somebody who may have been affected by the fire, please do ri

similar to that on grenfell tower, but it was issues with gas pipes and fire doors that made the fire servicecuation. they said there was nothing that we could do to guarantee residents‘ safety that night. in that situation, you know, given the circumstances we are in, i thought we had to act swiftly. peter bertram, who is 94, had to leave the flat he has had for almost 50 years. i felt sorry for people who are a lot worse than me, especially with children. they have to carry on. but there are at least 80 flats where residents are refusing to leave. i really cried last night. the council officials came to the door, banging on the door, "get out, get out," but the chap round the hallway said, "no, she‘s not going, she is getting on for 80. "she can‘t go anywhere, she‘s got a cat." work is under way to fix the faults but it will take weeks to complete. the residents of this tower block feel themselves to be in limbo, unsure of just how dangerous this building is and how long they might be excluded from their homes. in some cases it is possible to take mitigating action and the fire service are

on on a regular basis in these tower blocks and really it raises concerns about resourcing of fire servicesen missing out some very serious issues. manchester is part of the 27 buildings, some buildings there, and also nine blocks in salford. they we re also nine blocks in salford. they were recently refurbished and although they haven't been formally announced yet, they have been tested by the department for communities and local government, and they have been removed, the cladding has been removed regardless of the result. why do you think it is we have got this position wherever bridgeman has been taking place within say, last 18-24 been taking place within say, last 18—24 months, and yet safety is still being compromised? —— this position where refurbishment has been taking place. it is right that local authorities, where they can't guarantee the safety of the tower block, make every effort to make the tower block said, whether that is removing cladding or doing other works, that is appropriate that they do that —— to make the tower block safe. you have hit the nail on the head, though,

robust standards was a deep concern, given the combination, and that was the message from the fire servicesination of the two factors and that‘s why we‘ve taken the action we‘ve taken the night. the shadow of the worst fire in decades now looms large over social housing. grenfell tower was destroyed from the to the top. the fire started in a kitchen on the lower floor. now police have confirmed what eyewitnesses said, the origin of the inferno was a hotpoint fridge, like this one, in that kitchen. flames escaped through a window and began to race up and across the outside of the building. which is why the focus right from the start has been on what was added to the tower during its refurbishment. aluminium cladding and foam insulation and right from the start, police wanted to know how fire resistant was it. preliminary tests on the insulation samples collected from grenfell tower show that they combusted soon after the test started. the initial tests on the cladding tiles also failed the safety tests. such are our safety concerns on the outcome of those tests we have shared our data with t

camden council and the fire and rescue service are implementing responsibilities under the emergency r of am hoping that we are now going to hear from the leader of the council. let's go back to that statement from the department for communities and local government. they accept and acknowledge it is going to be very distressing for the people involved, who have to move out of their homes, and they are making every effort to ensure that the disruption is as little as possible, while they make arrangements to move them into temporary accommodation. clearly very distressing for people but offering them reassurance and certainty is the order of the day. hopefully we are going to hear a statement from the leader of camden council, georgia gould. ever since the tragic fire at granville we have been doing everything we can to track the safety of our blogs. 0n wednesday we were first in the queue to check the cladding on our blocks. what we found was that while the installation was safe, external cladding was not up to the standard that we wanted and was not fire reta rda nt. that we wanted

theresa may said the fire service and building research establishment was looking at the course of thee cladding and they expected to make the results public in the next couple of days. the communities secretary sergey —— savid javid said there needed to be a new approach in there needed to be a new approach in the wake of the grenfell tower fire. speaking in the continuing queen's speech debate savid javid said a change of attitude was needed. we all need to rethink our approach to social housing and reflect on the way successive governments have engaged with and respond to social te na nts. we engaged with and respond to social tenants. we don't yet know for sure whether this disaster could have been avoided if the people who called grenfell tower their home had been listened to. we know that for far too long their voices fell on deaf ears. if nothing else, let the legacy of grenfell be that such voices will never ever be ignored again. will he confirm now that since 2010 the government's record on building social homes is deplorable and has shown a 97% fall in social housing stocks?

we know it to be a fridge freezer now according to the fire services. both about the arrangements within the building itself and the lack of fire safety arrangements. also now, of course, those questions being asked much more widely in many other parts of the uk as local authorities look at the uk as local authorities look at the tower buildings they have. we know 14 blocks in nine areas have been identified as dangerous. we can talk to our guest again from camden where people have been evacuated from their homes overnight as we have been talking about. arnold, thank you very much for talking to us. thank you very much for talking to us. yesterday when we spoke to you, you joined us on the sofa and you we re very you joined us on the sofa and you were very concerned about the process and the safety of people in light of the dangers of some of this cladding. do you feel that the right action's been taken this morn something -- this morning? yes, i to. i was saying from day one, if you had buildings built like g re nfell tower, you had buildings built lik

what was the fire service's reaction when they discovered how quickly the fire had spread in the towerire was spreading more quickly than he would have expected so asked for further fire than he would have expected so asked forfurtherfire engines than he would have expected so asked for further fire engines as quickly as possible and then another incident commander made it a major incident commander made it a major incident very quickly, enabling us to step up more quickly than if it had been a slower process. the fire will be subject and is now subject ofa will be subject and is now subject of a full fire investigation alongside our colleagues in the met police and obviously any lessons learnt in this will be borne out, not just across learnt in this will be borne out, notjust across london, across the uk and lessons learnt globally. you say you have searched nearly all the building. have you managed to reach every floor? i can confirm i have managed to get firefighters three particularly arduous conditions up to the top floor, hampered for some time bya to the top floor, hampered for

i spent 42 years in the fire service, 20 years of that was as the chief fire officer. the comparison has been drawn between the grenfell tower and la ka nal house, which went up in flames in camberwell in 2009. we are also hearing that the recommendations from the coroner ‘s report haven't been implemented. why not?” from the coroner ‘s report haven't been implemented. why not? i can't say that it hasn't been fermented. i am sure the coroner wrote to southwark council with a letter of improvement, what should expect to happen. she talked about the procedures that came out of the inquest. she also wrote to the fire sector federation and she also wrote to four bodies and sent issues that arose from that fire. one of those issues, of course, that came out in this was prior to 1986 the london building axe, section 20, applying to the outside wall of buildings in tower blocks of flats, they were required to have a fire resistance of one hour. in 1986 the national building regulations were seen as appropriate because why should london be any different to the rest of the coun

more of that later and we have the latest updates from the fire service about the casualties and firectly what the situation is with the building itself as we can see. this morning there is still smoke emerging and late last night in the darkness you could still see the flames and we will have an update a little later on but for the moment it is back to the studio. thank you. the met police has set up an emergency number for anyone concerned about friends or family. it is 0800-0961-233. that's 0800-0961-233. there is other news to bring you: theresa may will meet political parties from northern ireland today at downing street. she'll discuss plans to restore power—sharing at stormont, and try to allay growing concerns about her attempt to secure the backing of democratic unionist mps in parliament. meanwhile, tim farron says he is stepping down as leader of the liberal democrats because he feels torn between his christian faith and his political duties. during the campaign he was repeatedly asked about his views on homosexuality. mr farron will stay on as leader until parliament goes

my response to all those with buildings covered by this through the fire safety checks with the fire service, take any measures necessary to make sure fire safety, will and doing that. >> in 2000 and only a third of new schools have sprinkler systems installed, parents are really concerned about the safety of their children. the coroner's letter formally recommended the governor should encourage providers of high-rise essential buildings with retrofitting sprinklers and two years later inside housing reported only 1% of sprinklers, and encouraging the retrofitting during the last four years. >> it did ensure, and aware of the recommendation for the foreign office. if we look at what happened, and the identification of the issues in a number of blocks so far. there are various issues that lead to concern about fire safety. if we look at what happened in camden where one was considered to be habitable but four of the five were not considered habitable, that was not just because of the clouding but other issues in relation for the gas riser. all of these issues raise wider questions, they raise

residents living in the taplow, burnham, bray and dorney towers were evacuated after the fire servicesafety of residents in the blocks could not be guaranteed. people in 83 flats refused to leave their homes and are still inside. the prime minister says the government is helping the council do what is necessary to ensure those evacuated have somewhere to stay. 0ur correspondent keith doyle has this report. why were we all ordered to be evacuated at half past eight at night? after a night of destruction and little sleep, residents came face—to—face with the leader of camden council. —— night of disruption. i am so absolutely stressed. why were hotels not looked at before we were all evacuated ? i've sat in a chair over here since nine o'clock last night. i'm 72 years old. i suffer with emphysema. now i'm being told they can't rehouse me because i've got a dog. what do they want me to do with my dog? put it to sleep? last night the council took the decision based on fire service advice that the 4,000 people living in the chalcots estate should be moved. some stayed in this centre on air

the local fire services and emergency services were on the scene rapidly to help rescucue o they couldescue from this 24 story building. it seemed the fire started on the third floor and within a matter of six minutes, half of the left side of the building was engulfed in fire. within the hour, the entire in theg was incinerated fire kept on until the following morning. our fire services did what they can do with the various stretched resources -- very stretched d resources. they were not able to reach beyond the 22nd floor just because itit became too difficut for them to do so. the structure was not safe enough for them to go beyond that, either. we also saw the local fire services, they managed to deploy whatever resources they had at their provision but were unable to meet the needs and had to call in the support of fire services from neighboring boroughs and neighborhoods. peopleis led to a lot of that are s still unaccounted fo. it is a 24 story building. we believe there are 520 residents who are stayiying in that building. so far we have a count of 79 people who have been decla

i spoke to dany cotton, the fire commissioner, earlier on and she told me that in her 29 years of servicenever seen an incident like this. this was unprecedented in her experience. i think that was in particular because of the speed and the ferocity with which the fire spread. i spoke to a local resident here this morning and she told me she watched as the fire seemed to pick up from about the eighth or ninth floor and spread incredibly rapidly upwards towards the top of the building. very sadly probably trapping a lot of people inside. we know now from the emergency services and from the mayor, sadiq khan, that at least six people have been killed, but they are expecting more fatalities and sadly, the next stage in this process, once that building is made relatively safe, is that search and rescue teams will go in and they will probably have to recover bodies from the higher floors, from those areas where people were unable to get out. there there is a lot of anger here as well. a resident association called the grenfell action group has been in touch with us. they say they're a group of

flat on the 27th floor of the trellick tower, a woman and two children were evacuated before the fire servicein flames but in the case of the trellick tower, in the same way we have seen in the case of the g re nfell tower have seen in the case of the grenfell tower and we have had the mayor of london on twitter an ounce in that he is calling this, declaring this an emergency for obvious reasons because there are just so many people involved in this. —— announcing. notjust people fighting the fire but those who are caught tragically in those flats. and also, it is a close—knit community, those people who are simply worried. yes, you speak of trellick tower, that took place in april earlier this year with 200 evacuated from that particular flat, and you describe the love hate relationship with the huge tower blocks. trellick tower, grade two listed building, designed by mand goldfinger, one of those where some people love it, some hate it, as is often the case with a huge tower blocks. thank you very much for the time being. 0ur bbc london reporter who, as we have heard, knows the area very we

that is what the fire services have told us. on that, we have to work closely with fire services. constant communication with them. their advice counts on this. if it comes to the point where people really won't leave, it is a last resort, the last thing i want to do is force people out of their homes. the conversations i have been having with residents is that they willing to work with us, and i will have those conversations again to not. the most important thing is to work with them. if those buildings aren't safe, if it comes to that, we will work with the buyers services on it. is there a deadline? it isn't a magic picture. the most important thing is that we have people wake on those blocks going up and down. when i first happy conversations with the fire services, and they said that it wasn't safe, it wasn't safety spent a night there, when the whole blog is sleeping, where we have residents, we will continue to knock oi'i residents, we will continue to knock on their doors, i am sure it is deeply disruptive, but we will keep having the conversations again and again, keeping

many of the fire services are changing over. arrie hirst from the kensington and chelsea volunteer centre. she manages a project called community champions in the local area and they've been helping out today. we are funded by public health and we are based in kensington and chelsea and westminster. we are community hubs so the project i manages for the notting dale ward, which is here and we work with the residents who live on the estates. obviously today, the news has been very upsetting. tell us about some of the people you have come across, they have lost everything? they have, but community spirit, as ever is an incredible thing. all the local organisations in the area have been inundated with donations and offers of support. we had so many volu nteers offers of support. we had so many volunteers are all desperate to help however they can. it has been incredible. are you comfortable that the night everybody has a bed? there are the night everybody has a bed? there a re lots of the night everybody has a bed? there are lots of

the london fire service say they sent 200 firefighters to the building.o to tackle it given the ferocity, we are not sure. we have seen those images of hydraulic platforms with hoses attached doing what they can to try to quench the flames on the lower floors but it continues to burn. and you can see the smoke cloud is stretching right across london, going on for miles. we've also heard from the mayor of london who has declared this as a major incident. no surprise really. we know that lots of people are affected by this, not just lots of people are affected by this, notjust in the building itself but firefighters as well. thank you so much. i know you will continue to monitor this, bringing us all the fa cts . monitor this, bringing us all the facts. a lot of speculation as to what started this. we can speak to paul who lived on the seventh floor and he managed to get out. paul who lived on the seventh floor and he managed to get outlj paul who lived on the seventh floor and he managed to get out. i managed to get out of the building not by a fire alarm.

camden council told people in five towers on the chalcots estate to move after the fire service said r safety could not be guaranteed. the buildings are clad in similar material to grenfell tower, where at least 79 people died in a fire last week. here is nick quraishi with the details. we cannot guarantee your safety. the message from camden council as 4000 residents were told to leave their homes late on friday night. individuals are not being forced to leave, they are being told to leave their own safety and it's up to them to decide. i intend to stay put and go back in their tonight. i think it isa go back in their tonight. i think it is a knee—jerk reaction from the council. in the aftermath of debt and phillip tower, cladding he had been ruled unsafe. concerns have also been raised about fire doors and gas pipes. in the area which was not completely to the best standards was a deep concern given the combination and that was the message from the fire services today. the issueis from the fire services today. the issue is a combination of the two factors that is why we have taken t

the fire service are doing that. could have stopped it spreading by spending £2 more on the cladding. the fire service are looking at what the cause of the fire was. and it is important that we get to the bottom of this, that we find out exactly what happened. but you were recommended this, in 2013. you were in government, then, and the coroner said you could have stopped this with a sprinkler system in every block. and the government has taken action on the recommendations of the coroner's report. lots of reaction from newswatch viewers to that interview. typical was ian whitehouse, who recorded his thoughts for us on camera. we all have the utmost sympathy and sadness for the victims and their families. however, nothing can justify the appalling viciousness of the haranguing of the prime minister in an interview by emily maitlis. it was more like a kangaroo court diatribe, based on assumptions of responsibility and guilt which hadn't yet even been discussed, let alone proven. other viewers contacted us with their c

we can only praise the fire service for their efforts. ergency services for their efforts in trying to make some sort of sense and save as many people as they can. this was really horrific. there is people who we re really horrific. there is people who werejumping really horrific. there is people who were jumping out of the place. really horrific. there is people who werejumping out of the place. there isa man werejumping out of the place. there is a man who threw two of his children. wow. we saw a lot. we saw a lot with our own eyes. we saw friends, families... it's all right, you do not up to say any more. i am so sorry. mahad really emotional and distressed but managed to tell us in an incredibly articulate way how he escaped grenfell tower with his two young children and his wife, some incredibly distressing descriptions of some of the people who lived in the tower and did manage to get out. simone helped a lot of people, tell us simone helped a lot of people, tell us how you helped? around 1230 i was in my living room and heard a lot