GRENFELL HORROR STILL ALIVE Update 7 Oct., 2019

Update 7 Oct., 2019 - it was reported that Grenfell victims being housed in a more expensive blocks of flat in Acton are not allowed to use the communal garden; even so they pay £200 for the upkeep. 

Update 10 April, 2019 - It was about two years ago and the families are still living in temporary accommodations - PM May promised to rehouse them within six weeks - surely they would have deserved that much after experiencing such horror - This is one of the biggest disgrace of Tory Government.

Although Grenfell came off the headlines and politicians, especially May, trying to ignore it but the experienced horror of the 14 June, 2017, has not gone away. The most effected are the victims and 200 crew from the Paddington firefighters who were the first.

One of the firefighters, Paul Abell, was able to talk about it. They were working non-stop going up and down the smoke-fill stairs. They had to listen to the screams and must have known they could not help everybody. This alone must be with them forever. Firefighters are highly trained to bring people out but a blaze like that it is impossible.

Even after six months, Tom, his colleagues and Grenfell victims are still having nightmares of the worst blaze which killed 71 adults and children.

Paul said that at first, he was numb but then it hit him like a tsunami out of the blue and he started crying. He and his colleagues have their ups and downs and it will never go away.  After all they spent nine hours in the heart of the devastation.

How these men were able to stand it is impossible to imagine. TV showed them coming out and sinking, completely exhausted, to the ground. Paul and eight others trying to lessen the mental trauma by training for the London marathon. They will raise funds for the affected families who most of them are still in temporary accommodations.  

This fact alone adds further to the victims’ trauma but Chelsea/Kensington council, which is one of the richest, does not seem to care. At one time, flats were found within the borough, but the rich neighbours threatened with selling up and it was dropped. It shows the heartlessness of the rich. The issue had been raised by the Labour Party many times in the House of Commons, but PM May gave an answer like “Yes, we are aware of it and look into it ”, obviously nothing happened.

After an investigation it showed the cheaper gladding, which saved merely £5,000, was the main reason for the rapidly rising fire. An inspection found there are 93 high-rising towers with the same dangerous gladding. The Tory government was asked to foot the bill of removing it and install sprinklers which were also missing in Grenfell. Both requests were refused.

The company responsible for the gladding is now bankrupt conveniently so they have not to pay compensation. The tenants of high-rising towers are asked to pay for the removing and new gladding, supposed to be more fire-resistant to be installed. That’s how May and her cronies get out of their responsibility. They forget that it is the people who voted them in and can at the next election, vote them out. They don’t do anything for the benefit of the people, on the contrary, for which they are there for.