Local churches are coming together to help victims of the massive fire that has engulfed the Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, west London.
St. Clement's Church on Sirdar Road has become a centre for help. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, tweeted: 'We weep & pray for those in West London. Let us all support those affected by donating necessaries to St Clements Church.'
Pastor Derek Wilson from the nearby Tabernacle Christian Centre this morning rushed to the Latymer Christian Centre on Bramley Road, near to the fire, where people are also gathering. He told Christian Today that members of his church and other churches are uniting to help, including with the distribution of food and water.
He said that there were around 50 people helping out at the Latymer Christian Centre. 'I have just been speaking to some of the residents that were made homeless,' said Wilson. 'The community has come together and everyone is just helping out at the moment. There's food coming from everywhere. Everyone is doing what they can do to help out, especially those who escaped with [just] the clothes on their back...Churches are coming together. Members from my church are coming down to help out with the distribution of food and water – people are in a state of shock.'
Wilson confirmed to Christian Today that there was 'a lot of anger' among local residents, who have complained to the council about the state of the building. There were reports this morning that a local resident group, the Grenfell Action Group, repeatedly warned about the risk of fire in the tower and claimed a major fire was narrowly averted after a power surge in 2013. It said its concerns were dismissed.
'There is a lot of despair and anger because warnings had gone on to the council about the foam they were refurbishing the flats with on the outside of the building. We can now see foam everywhere. Some of the residents were telling me that the police were telling them to go back into the homes and just put blankets and towels at the bottom of the door – some did and didn't come back out. I don't know where that order came from. So there are a lot of angry residents at this time because they can't find their friends and loved ones.'
A number of people have died after the huge fire broke out shortly before 1am. The tower is at least 24 storeys high and contains 120 apartments. Some 200 firefighters have been tackling the blaze with 40 engines, with the London ambulance service saying that they were called at 1.29am. Twenty crews raced to the scene.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) has confirmed that there have been 'a number of fatalities'. LFB said firefighters arrived within six minutes of the first 999 call, and more than 50 patients have been taken to five London hospitals.
There have been multiple reports of people trapped in the blaze and witnesses have described screams of terror and people jumping in an attempt to reach safety.
Streets around the tower have been sealed off and falling debris also caused nearby flats to be evacuated.
LFB has called it an 'unprecedented incident' and say there is no known cause at the moment for the blaze. The London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has described the fire as a 'major incident'.
