New 2024 London apartment tower fire with flammable cladding raises concerns just days before the final Grenfell Report is due for release
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A fire in an apartment tower block in east London on Monday has once again highlighted fire risk related concerns about the use of flammable cladding on buildings.
This incident occurred just days before the final report on the 2017 Grenfell Tower disaster is due to be released.
In the early hours of Monday morning, over 40 fire engines and more than 200 firefighters responded to the fire on Freshwater Road in Dagenham. The London Fire Brigade declared it a major incident, The Emergency Services Times and other British media reported on Tuesday.
More than 80 residents were evacuated from their homes, and an additional 20 people were rescued by firefighters. Two individuals were taken to the hospital for unspecified reasons.
The fire occurred at an apartment block that London Fire Commissioner Andy Roe noted had “a number of fire safety issues” and was undergoing work to remove “non-compliant cladding.”
Dame Judith Hackitt, chair of the Independent Review of Building Regulations, said replacing unsafe cladding is "urgent," and ensuring the safety of existing homes must take precedence over constructing new ones. She made this statement following the fire that severely damaged the tower block in Dagenham, east London.
While investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire, the fire service has indicated that the building had "known" safety issues, and the cladding's role in the incident will be a key focus of the investigation, the BBC reports.
Dame Judith commended the fire service's response but expressed her concern on Radio 4's Today, stating that it is "really concerning" that "so many people are living with uncertainty and fear about the buildings they are in."
London Fire Brigade said questions around the role of cladding in the fire would form part of its investigation, The Guardian reports.
LFB assistant commissioner Patrick Goulbourne said: “What I wouldn’t want to do is pre-empt an investigation. This was a very, very dynamic incident and clearly it’s going to require a very complex investigation, not only to get to its cause but to get to an understanding of the fire spread.
“So it’s too early at this time to be able to give any detail on that, but that will form part of our investigation in the coming days.”
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) delivered a harsh assessment of the Dagenham fire, stating that it once again highlighted the "national scandal" of flammable cladding and deregulation within the building industry.
The union noted that the tower block had been issued a fire enforcement notice in 2023.
