18 Jun 2017

London fire: 58 missing, presumed dead

6:08 am on 18 June 2017

Fifty eight people are dead or missing, presumed dead following the devastating fire at Grenfell Tower in west London, police have said.

A woman lays flowers in tribute to the victims of the June 14 Grenfell Tower block fire in Kensington, west London, on June 17, 2017.

A woman lays flowers in tribute to the victims of the fire. Photo: AFP

Commander Stuart Cundy said that number "may increase". The BBC understands it could be around 70 people in total.

The recovery operation at the burnt-out block of flats, which was briefly stalled due to safety reasons, has resumed and could take weeks, he said.

Residents caught up in the fire have condemned the "chaotic" relief effort.

Mr Cundy appealed for anyone who managed to escape from the building to let authorities know they were safe.

Pictures and footage showing the inside of the tower will be released on Sunday to help people understand why the search was taking so long, he said.

Of the resumed search, he said: "As soon as we can, we will locate and recover loved ones."

The latest police update comes as the Queen reflected on the "sombre national mood" following tragedies in London and Manchester in recent weeks in her official birthday message.

In an unprecedented statement, the Queen said she had been "profoundly struck by the immediate inclination of people throughout the country to offer comfort and support to those in desperate need".

"Put to the test, the United Kingdom has been resolute in the face of adversity," she said.

Members of the emergency services work on the middle floors of the charred remains of the Grenfell Tower block.

Members of the emergency services work on the middle floors of the charred remains of the Grenfell Tower block. Photo: AFP

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Theresa May has met victims, volunteers and community leaders in Downing Street.

As they left Number 10, one representative spoke to reporters briefly, saying they would not make a full statement yet.

"We will be making this in the community, with the community," he said.

"We have had two-and-a-half hours with the prime minister in the last 48 hours and spoke about demands and what we expect."

In other developments:

  • A minute's silence was observed by the Queen at the Trooping the Colour parade to remember the victims
  • Mrs May's new taskforce, made up of central government and Kensington and Chelsea council representatives, met
  • Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, led an adoration and mass in memory of the victims at St Pius X Church
  • The Circle line and Hammersmith and City underground lines, which run close to the tower, are partly suspended at the request of fire chiefs following a "short-term risk of some debris falling onto the tracks"
Protesters stormed Kensington Town Hall, demanding justice for those affected by the fire that gutted Grenfell Tower.

Protesters stormed Kensington Town Hall, demanding justice for those affected by the fire that gutted Grenfell Tower. Photo: AFP

Mrs May has come in for a barrage of criticism over her response to the disaster, including being jeered when she visited the North Kensington estate on Friday.

On Saturday afternoon, hundreds of protesters gathered in Whitehall, to call for her resignation.

First Secretary of State Damian Green has defended the prime minister, saying she was as "distraught as we all are".

The government has committed £5 million for clothes, food and emergency supplies for the victims.

The BBC's Matthew Price said senior members of the residents' association described an "absolute chaos" of "no organisation" from officials.

Some residents said they no longer want Kensington and Chelsea council involved in any way.

He added: "They do not believe they are capable of managing the response. Such is the total and utter lack of trust."

Reverend Mike Long, from Notting Hill Methodist Church, said people in the community were angry and bewildered, and had lots of questions.

"They feel they're not being listened to and what they have been saying has not been listened to, and they don't know how to be able to express those things at the moment," he told BBC Radio 4's Today.

The fire broke out at the 24-storey block, which contained 120 one and two-bedroom flats, in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

It tore through all floors of the building and took more than 200 firefighters 24 hours to bring under control.

-BBC

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs