Residents evacuated in tower block fire
Seven residents were rescued by firefighters after a huge fire ripped through a block of flats in Lewisham on the morning of 15th August.
Five women and two young children were rescued from the flats in Campshill Road. Fire control officers were needed to speak over the phone to residents still trapped in the building, telling them what they must do to stay safe whilst waiting to be rescued.
Four people jumped from the first floor of the building before the firefighters had arrived at the scene.
Several people were taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation and other injuries.
Ziggy Hurrion, from the London Fire Brigade said: “Seven lives were saved in the early hours of this morning due to the quick thinking actions of our staff. Both our control officers, who handled the 999 calls from those inside the flats, and the brave actions of our firefighters, ensured that five women and two children were safely rescued from the blaze. They were all heroes this morning. Ambulance crews and police officers also did a great job at what was undoubtedly a challenging incident for all who attended. Nine people were taken to hospital and fortunately, at this stage, we don’t believe anyone was seriously injured. I can’t praise the actions of our staff enough as this incident could easily have ended in tragedy.”
Much of the building was damaged in the fire and an investigation is now underway to find out how it started.
150 evacuated from tower block blaze
A man is in a critical condition after a tower block fire.
Fire crews evacuated 150 residents from a block of flats in Wandsworth, south London at around 12.35 am on Friday 12th August after a fire broke out on the 9th floor.
Firefighters pulled the 40 year old man from the fire and he was immediately taken to hospital suffering from burns and smoke inhalation. It is reported that the man had also suffered a cardiac arrest according to a London Fire Brigade spokesperson.
50 firefighters and 8 engines attended the incident at Andrew Reed House which took around 2 hours to extinguish.
Scotland Yard confirm that the fire was not linked to the recent riots in the capital.
A spokesperson for the London Fire Brigade said that: “Eighty per cent damage was caused to the flat where the fire started while 70% damage was done to the external fascia above the ninth floor.”
Kingston fire victim named
A 48 year old man who died in a fire last week has just been named as Anthony Arthur Ash.
The fire broke out in a first-floor flat above Lime Leaves Restaurant in Kingston at around 9.15pm on 18th May and was quickly extinguished by the London Fire Brigade. Mr Ash was pronounced dead at the scene.
An inquest into the death has been opened.
The incident is not being treated as suspicious.
London fire incident map
A map of London that shows the number of fire related incidents in the capital is now available to view on line.
The map shows all recorded incidents that have been dealt with by firefighters.
The map shows that firefighters are called to approximately 3734 incidents in each London borough every month, Croydon had the most serious fires – and Southwark had the most call outs to people being stuck in lifts!
Susan Hall from the fire Authority’s Community Safety Committee said: “London’s firefighters have done an excellent job of making the capital safer in recent years but there are still some areas that are having too many fires. The map shows that fires happen each and every day across London – what better incentive could there be for people to make sure it doesn’t happen to them?”
The map can be viewed here: http://maps.london-fire.gov.uk/