The full extent of failings behind the Grenfell Tower inferno were laid bare today as police revealed that a fire started by a faulty fridge freezer ignited cladding and insulation that has failed all safety tests.
S
cotland Yard today issued a dramatic alert over materials used on the tower today after samples caught light easily during new independent tests.
Officials were so concerned at the findings that the information was immediately shared with the Government which has, in turn, alerted local councils.
All the latest news, views and opinion on the Grenfell tragedy
The tests on insulation samples taken from the tower were carried out by experts employed by Scotland Yard which is carrying out a criminal investigation into how the fire started and why it took hold so easily.
Today police also said they will consider manslaughter charges as part of their investigation and revealed that officers had “started seizing relevant documents” from a number of different organisations.
The Met said officials had established that the terrifying blaze started in a Hotpoint fridge freezer, believed to be the fridge fire which began on the fourth floor of the North Kensington block.
Police said the fridge freezer FF175BP had not previously been linked to any fires and had not been subject to any recall.
Detective Superintendent Fiona McCormack, who is overseeing the investigation, said early tests had been carried out on the cladding and insulation installed on the tower during a recent £10 million refit.
The tower in west London ablaze last week at the height of the fire
She said: “What we are being told is that the cladding and that insulation failed all safety tests.
“The insulation was more flammable than the cladding. Primarily tests show the insulation samples combusted soon after the test started. So there are safety concerns.”
She added: “Such are the concerns over the outcome we have immediately shared the data with the Department for Communities and Local Government. The DCLG are sharing the information with local councils.”
Det Supt McCormack said the investigation would be “exhaustive” saying: “It will seek to establish how the fire started and how quickly it took hold, the speed was unexpected.”
At least 79 people died in the fire, but police fear they may never know the true picture
She added: “We will also seek to understand what happened to each and every person who died in the fire.”
Previously, police said they will examine everything from the cause of the fire to the management of the building, recent refurbishments and fire safety measures and whether panels were fitted unlawfully.
Celotex, an Ipswich-based company, has said it made the insulation which fitted between cladding and the concrete wall of the tower. The company said the product used had Class 0 rating which prevented flames from spreading and limited the amount of heat released.
Police said the number of people who had died or were missing and presumed dead remained at 79, a figure which has not changed since Monday.
In Pictures: The Grenfell Tower blaze (GES Photos)
London apartment block fire
However, Det Supt McCormack warned that the figure could still change and urged anyone who might have been in the tower who had not yet contacted the authorities to come forward.
She said neither the Home Office or her inquiry was interested in the immigration status of anyone living there.
She added: “Our priority is to identify all those who died, we do not want there to be any hidden victims.” A total of 250 officers led by an experienced homicide detective are working on the inquiry with prosecutors advising on possible corporate manslaughter charges.
The detective said officers had begun seizing documents from organisations involved but said nobody has been questioned because it is “way too early”.
She said charges of manslaughter and other criminal breaches including potential breaches of regulations would be considered. In recent days concern has focused on the cladding panels fitted to the tower during the multi-million pound refit.
So far, the Government has received samples from 11 high rise buildings in eight local authority areas in the UK where the cladding has failed safety tests, including a number in London.
Premier Inn also revealed “concerns” today that cladding used on some of its buildings may not meet safety regulations. The hotel chain said three of its properties – in Maidenhead, Brentford and Tottenham – have been investigated during a “detailed assessment” of its estate.
A spokeswoman said the material was not the same as that used to clad the Grenfell Tower where a devastating fire left 79 dead or missing presumed dead. However, she said the company had called in an expert to review the safety of its buildings.
Det Supt McCormack appealed to anyone who had previous concerns about safety at grenfell Tower to contact threm. So far, police have seized hundreds of hours of CCTV, listened to 600 999 calls and started taking statements from fire survivors.
Officers are continuing a “painstaking search” of the tower.
David Lammy, the Labour MP for Tottenham whose friend artist Khadija Saye died in the Grenfell fire, has demanded that issues relating to sprinklers, fire doors and the cladding should all be investigated and has asked why arrests are not being made. Anyone with information should call the investigation team on 0800 032 4539
It came as concerns grew today over cladding in at least four more London boroughs following the Grenfell Tower inferno. Residential tower blocks in Barnet, Brent, Haringey, and Newham are understood to have cladding similar to Grenfell’s.
But the problem may be far wider with the safety spotlight shifting onto schools, hospitals, students accommodation, hotels and office blocks. Premier Inn Premier said that it had “concerns” that cladding used on some of its buildings may not meet safety regulations.
The hotel chain said three of its properties – in Maidenhead, Brentford and Tottenham – have been investigated during a “detailed assessment” of its estate, though the cladding was different to that on Grenfell.
Samples of cladding were taken yesterday in Barnet where three blocks – Granville Point, Harpenmead Point and Templemead Point are fitted with external rain screen panels of aluminium composite material.
They are believed to be the same type, or similar, to cladding on tower blocks in Camden which the council has already started removing.
The insulation behind the cladding on the social housing blocks in both Camden and Barnet is understood to be non-combustible.
However, residents of the flats in Barnet will inevitably be asking why their cladding is not being removed, given the steps being taken in Camden. In Haringey, the Newlon Housing Trust confirmed that its 22-storey Rivers Apartments in Tottenham, which was completed in the spring of 2015, is clad with Reynobond PE.
The building has a sprinkler system and other fire safety measures and the London Fire Brigade carried out an extensive audit yesterday, making some “straightforward recommendations”, subject to which it would consider it to be a low fire risk block.
A Newlon spokesman added: “With regard to the status of the cladding at the end of last week we asked the leading independent experts the Building Research Establishment to review its design and specification and we are waiting for their technical recommendations.
“This will determine whether or not the cladding should be removed and replaced, and if so what the appropriate replacement should be.”
Brent North Labour MP Barry Gardiner hand delivered a letter to the Octavia Housing at 3am this morning after being informed by Brent council’s chief executive Carolyn Downes that cladding on Elizabeth House, High Road, Wembley, had “failed” a fire safety test.
In a statement this morning, Grahame Hindes, chief executive of Octavia Housing, said: “The safety of our residents is always our top priority.
“We were therefore very disappointed to hear this morning that some of the panels on one of our recently completed schemes in Wembley do not meet the highest standards expected by the Building Research Establishment.”
He stressed that Elizabeth House is a modern purpose-built block with a comprehensive fire strategy and a range of fire safety features including sprinklers in all flats. Three blocks have been identified by Newham council with external cladding made of aluminium composite material, though it was not clear whether this was the combustible type believed to have been on Grenfell.
Councils around the country have sent off cladding samples from tower blocks to undergo testing, including in Sheffield, Halifax and Salford. Meanwhile, more town halls were today considering putting in sprinkler systems.
Hammersmith and Fulham said it was working on plans to put in sprinklers in 15 blocks of 12 storeys or more.