CROSS POSTED WITH LINKS ON BYLINE.COM
I am running these series of blogs from the distraught residents association in London following this fire . They sadly speak for themselves. This absolutely tragic scandal means there must be a full scale inquiry set up by the government. These warnings from the local residents association suggest to me that something badly went wrong over fire safety concerns and that people will need to be brought to book.
The inquiry must be wide ranging and involve all tower blocks that have been recently refurbished in this way across the country not just in Kensington. In the meantime tribute must be made to the London Fire Brigade – which has been the subject of merciless cuts and privatisation – and the NHS hospitals again at the front line so soon after two terror attacks in the capital.
All one can say is that I cannot imagine the horror and fear that distraught families and their relatives are facing tonight after such an appalling event and my thoughts are with them.
Watching breaking news about the Grenfell Tower fire catastrophe. Too soon (5am) to even guess at numbers of casualties and fatalities. Our heartfelt and sincere condolences to all who have perished, to the injured, to those who are bereaved or are still searching for missing loved ones.
Regular readers of this blog will know that we have posted numerous warnings in recent years about the very poor fire safety standards at Grenfell Tower and elsewhere in RBKC.
ALL OUR WARNINGS FELL ON DEAF EARS and we predicted that a catastrophe like this was inevitable and just a matter of time. Below is a list of links to previous blogs we posted on this site trying to warn the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, who own this property, and the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation who supposedly manage all social housing in RBKC on the Council’s behalf:
https://grenfellactiongroup.wordpress.com/2013/01/28/fire-safety-scandal-at-lancaster-west/
https://grenfellactiongroup.wordpress.com/2016/11/20/kctmo-playing-with-fire/
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Westminster Confidential 
From the Guardia’s online site:
“Dr Jim Glocking, technical director of the Fire Protection Association (FPA), an industry body, said his organisation had been pushing for a review of fire-related building regulations for some time.
“While we have lobbied long and hard to changes to building regulations, the groups responsible have remained resolutely intransigent to opening up a review,” he said.
“Various ministers have said over the years that there will be an imminent review, but it keeps being put on hold, in spite of organisations like ourselves campaigning very hard.”
Among the areas the FPA wanted reviewed, Glocking said, was a lack of compulsion for external insulation underneath cladding on tower blocks to be fire resistant, and tighter regulations over timber-framed buildings, now the most common method for social housing.”
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/14/review-of-fire-safety-rules-pledged-by-minister-last-year-yet-to-be-published
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Gregory Norminton @GDRNorminton
Red tape saves lives. Regulation saves lives. Both are a nuisance, but less than dying of smoke inhalation.
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“At least 72 of the Conservative MPs that rejected an amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill, which would have ensured that rental properties are fit for human habitation, are in fact private landlords.”
https://landlordnews.co.uk/many-conservative-mps-that-rejected-fit-for-human-habitation-amendment-are-landlords/
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