Ealing Council Seek To Reassure After Grenfell Tower Blaze

They say no tower blocks in borough have 'combustible cladding'

Pictures: @Natalie_Oxford

Ealing Council's seeking to reassure residents following the massive fire at Grenfell Tower near the Westway.

At least 79 people are now believed to be dead or missing following the blaze at the 24 storey building in North Kensington which took hold in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The fire is believed to have started shortly before 1am and quickly spread from the second floor to the top floor.

Cordons are in place and it is advised that the estate and surrounding area is avoided.

An £8.6m refurbishment - which was part of a wider transformation of the estate - was completed by Rydon Construction in May last year. Work included new exterior cladding, replacement windows and a communal heating system.

Robert Bond, CEO of Rydon Group said, '' “We were shocked to hear of the devastating fire at Grenfell Tower and our immediate thoughts are with those that have been affected by the incident, their families, relatives and friends. Rydon completed a partial refurbishment of the building in the summer of 2016 for Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation on behalf of the Council.  The project met all required building regulations and handover took place when the completion notice was issued by the Department of Building Control, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.  We are working with the relevant authorities and emergency services and fully support their enquiries into the causes of this fire.”

Rydon are developers behind the Green Man Lane Estate in West Ealing.

An Ealing council spokesperson said, ''The new build homes at Green Man Lane and the original 1970s blocks are of different construction to Grenfell Tower.  All our new build homes meet modern safety standards and are fully compliant with building control requirements including those of the fire brigade.

''Green Man Lane, along with all our other blocks, is rigorously inspected every year by an independent fire expert.  Our housing officers and caretaking staff also make additional safety inspections regularly.”

''Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with everyone who was affected bythe terrible fire at Grenfell Tower, and with the family and friends of the people who tragically lost their lives.

“We have a strict and rigorous fire safety inspection regime in Ealing and we are confident that all of our tower blocks are fully compliant. None of our blocks have combustible cladding and we carry out regular joint inspections with the London Fire Brigade. In addition, daily checks are carried out by our caretakers.

“In light of these tragic events, we will now be going door to door in all of our tower blocks to provide reassurance to our residents and remind them of the fire protection and safety arrangements for each individual block designed to keep them safe.”

The Met Police has set up an emergency number on 0800 0961 233 for anyone concerned about friends or family.

15 June 2017  (updated)