Inside the flat where the Grenfell fire began

The gutted interior of the flat where the Grenfell Tower fire started has been pictured for the first time as a series of reports laid bare how dangerous cladding meant the fire quickly spread through the building.

Seventy-two people were killed after the fire tore through the housing block in Kensington, west London, on June 14 last year.

One of a series of expert reports into the disaster released today shows images of flat 16, on the fourth floor of the 25-storey building, where the fire started around a fridge freezer.

The report stopped short of saying a fault with the device was the cause of the blaze, stating only that the 'origin of the fire was in, or around, the tall fridge freezer'.


Another report, which examined the spread of the fire, found the cladding put on the outside of the building did not comply 'with recommended fire performance' and criticised the 'stay-put' policy which encouraged residents to remain in their flats in the event of the fire.

Fire-safety engineer Barbara Lane said the fire service's policy had 'effectively failed' barely a half-hour after the fire started, but residents weren't told to evacuate for more than an hour after that.

The cladding meant the fire spread up seven storeys within seven minutes, with 70 flats ablaze in under two hours. The disaster was compounded by non-compliant fire doors, combustible window fittings and a faulty firefighting lift.






MailOnline