Grenfell Tower fire warning was issued by experts SEVEN MONTHS before tragedy.
A fire deficiency notice from the then London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA), served in November 2016, and a separate independent Fire Risk Assessment, both identified multiple failures at Grenfell that required prompt action by the building management, the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO).
The warnings from the independent assessor were issued in June 2016, one year before the fire, with deadlines for action.
Labour MP for Tottenham David Lammy said there had been “clear negligence” and that people were “culpable” for the Grenfell tragedy.
“There was clear negligence, that negligence has led to manslaughter and the loss of lives,” he said.
“People are culpable. This evidence is probably in front of the inquiry, but it is hugely important that the police act on this gross negligence that we’re hearing about today.”
In October, the fire risk assessor wrote to the KCTMO asking why action still hadn’t been taken on more than 20 issues he had identified in his June report.
But based on inspections of the building after the fire by experts for the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, there appears to be no evidence action was taken on many of the failings.
Sandra Ruiz, the aunt of 12-year-old Grenfell victim Jessica Ramirez said: “It makes me really angry that somebody would have received that information and didn’t act on it.”
The two fire safety audits identified problems with damaged or poorly fitted fire doors, fire doors that didn’t self-close, and raised questions about how the refurbishment had affected the operation of the building’s smoke venting system and the firefighter’s lift controls.
These were all problems identified by Dr Barbara Lane in her report to the Inquiry. She’s charged with identifying why the Grenfell Tower behaved the way it did in the fire leading to such catastrophic loss of life.
Experts have expressed surprise at how quickly smoke had spread through the building in the early stages of the fire. Smoke which prevented residents from escaping, and made it far harder for firefighters to enter.
