“I looked out of the window, and the flames were rising up the building,” Ms. Wahabi, of the ninth floor, said a few hours after she had escaped. “The flames were unbelievable. Pieces of the exterior were breaking off. Cladding was flying through the air.”

Ms. Wahabi said that she had spoken by telephone with her brother, who was on the 21st floor, and urged him to leave, but that he had been told by firefighters to stay in place until he could be rescued.

She said she had not been able to contact him since, adding, “I have done a lot of crying.”

The building was populated by many immigrants, from countries that included Eritrea, the Philippines, Somalia and Sudan. Many were observing Ramadan and preparing or eating suhoor, the predawn meal.

Among them was Mr. Abbas, who was visiting his cousin.

“I opened the door and everyone was shouting, ‘Fire, fire, get back in,’ ” he recalled. “Then a neighbor called my cousin and told us to wait for the Fire Brigade. We were terrified and thought about trying to get out the window. There were people dangling out the windows trying to get out.”

He added: “My cousin had his kids with him, and they started crying and screaming when the smoke started coming in. There was no way out, we were stuck, and no one was coming to help us.”

“I don’t know how long it took, but it felt like ages before we got out,” Mr. Abbas said. “I could see people lying on the floor as we were being pulled out. I think a lot of people died. It’s a nightmare.”

Abdul Kadiri, who lives nearby, was reunited with a friend who lived on the 15th floor of Grenfell Tower, and who called Mr. Kadiri as flames licked the building. “I told him to grab his family and get out, and he hung up,” Mr. Kadiri recalled.

Another neighborhood resident, Alison Evans, woke to the sound of sirens and helicopters and watched flames engulf the building from a nearby street. “It just kept burning and burning for hours, and for hours there were still people at the top of the building screaming for help,” she said. “It was hell to watch.”

Another resident, Mohammed Bouya, said he could hear people screaming for help from their windows. Firefighters told them to stay where they were, he said.

The so-called stay-put policy is not uncommon for British high-rises, but the resident association had complained about it, saying that it would hinder escape in the event of a fire. Nonetheless, the management company had recently posted fire safety instructions — including the stay-put policy — at the building’s entrance and outside elevators on every floor.

The intensity and power of the fire led to fears that the building might collapse, but rescue workers and investigators were able to enter after the flames had been beaten back.

Donations of food, water, clothing, diapers and toiletries poured in to the reception centers, including the Rugby Portobello Trust, a charity, where the volume of items — including pillows and a cooling fan — was so great that volunteers had to place them in boxes on the sidewalk to take to other locations. A gym opened its showers for displaced residents, and the Westway Sports and Fitness Center provided mattresses.</s>06:41

Missing following the fire at Grenfell Tower in west London: Clockwise from top left: Khadija Saye, Mariem Elgwahry, Ali Yawar Jafari, and Jessica Urbano Ramiez. Composite: Social media/Handout/PA

Here’s what we know about those people still missing.



Khadija Saye

Saye, 24, is a photographer who recently exhibited her work at the Venice Biennale, and is believed to have been living in a flat with her mother, Mary Mendy. David Lammy, MP for Tottenham, a friend, has appealed for information, tweeting to say the young photographer was a “dear friend, a beautiful soul and emerging artist”.



Saye was last heard from at 3am when she messaged on Facebook that she was unable to get out of the flat as the smoke was so thick.

Mary Mendy, 53, has been registered as living in the tower block for at least 20 years. She is believed to have been living on the 17th floor of the building.

Jessica Urbano

Jessica, 12, lived on the 20th floor and became separated from her family. Ana Ospina, a makeup artist, said she had visited a number of hospitals trying to find out about her niece. She was also reported to have been put into an ambulance. Another aunt, Sandra, told the Mirror “somebody gave her a phone and she rang her mum at 1.29am and at 1.39am”. She was believed to be a with a group of people on the fire stairs.

Farah Hamdan, her husband Omar Belkadi and six-month-old daughter Leena Belkadi

The family, including two other children who have since been found, were on the 20th floor. Farah called her sister at around 1am. She was told by the family to leave, but said she had been told to “stay put”. Her cousin, Adel Chaoui, said the two children found were in hospital, but one was in a coma. “No one knows what will happen. The other one is traumatised and sedated but otherwise OK.”

Mariem Elgwahry

Friends appealed for information about the 27-year-old, who is believed to have been living on the 19th floor. One woman posted she had last been heard from at 2.30am and was with her mother when she called. According to records, a man called Ahmed Elgwahry was also living in the property.

Abdulaziz Wahabi, wife Faouzia, and children Nurhouda, Yassin and Medhi

All lived on the 21st floor of the tower, according to Wahabi’s sister, Hana, who spoke to him on the night. “He said he had been told to stay inside, stay in one room together and put towels under the door. I told him to leave.” But he said there was too much smoke. “The last time I saw him they were waving out the window. The last time I spoke to his wife, he was on the phone to the fire brigade.”

Ali Yawar Jafari

His son, Hamid Ali Jafari, appealed on Twitter for information. He said the 82-year-old was living on the 10th floor of the building. He said his father had lost contact with his mother and sister who lived with him. “He was with my mother and sister in the lift and she said the lift stopped on the 10th floor and he said there was too much smoke and he couldn’t breathe and he got out of the lift and then the door shut and it didn’t stop again till the ground floor,” he told the Telegraph.

Mohamednur Tucca

He is missing along with his wife Amalahmedin and his three-year-old daughter after visiting relatives. His manager, Mike Morgan, chief executive of the Soho-based PR agency the Red Consultancy, told Sky News: “Mo is part of the family. He will have been with us for 10 years next month and is due to be awarded his decade milestone. We all just want to hear he is OK.”

Gloria Trevisan and Marco Gottardi

The young Italian couple recently moved into the 23rd floor of the block. “I don’t have news from them since last night and their mobile phones are off,” Gottardi’s cousin wrote on Facebook. “I’m praying to God they make it out safely.” Trevisan, 26, called her mother in Italy at roughly 3.30am to say their building was ablaze, according to the Italian newspaper Corriere del Veneto. They have not been heard from since.

Raymond “Moses” Bernard

A family friend told the Press Association that Raymond Bernard, 65, known to friends as Moses, was missing. He was registered at flat 201, along with Karen Bernard, 53. They had lived there since at least 2003.

Rania Ibrham

Believed to be the mother of two small children, aged three and five, the 30-year-old uploaded a Facebook Live video as she appeared to be stuck at the top of the tower block, and has not been heard from by friends since. In the footage, she can be seen seeking help in the smoke-filled corridor before going back into her home and looking down on the street below from her balcony. Her husband was reportedly not at home because he is on holiday.

Hesham Rahman

Noha Baghdady shared a picture of her brother Hesham Rahman, 57, on social media, saying he lived on the 20th floor. His nephews were searching hospitals. Sky News reported that his last contact with family was at around 3am when he told them he could smell smoke. He reportedly has diabetes, making it difficult for him to walk down stairs.

Dennis Murphy

Stevan Racz shared a post seeking information about his uncle Dennis Murphy, who he said had called while trapped on the 14th floor of the building. “We haven’t heard anything since.”

Tony Disson

His son Lee Disson posted on Facebook to say: “If anyone has seen my dad, Tony Disson, could they let us know.” He is believed to have been living in flat 194. Another relative tweeted: “My cousin is desperate to trace his dad. Tony Disson. He lived on the 10th floor. We are hearing terrible news from neighbours.” The 66-year-old lived with his wife Cordelia.

Mohamed “Saber” Neda

A friend of Neda, Ariana Neumann Rodger, posted on Facebook that “his family are severely injured and in hospital and desperate to find out where he is”. Zia Popal, who described him as his uncle, posted: “He was on the top floor of the building trying to help [people] and went missing since.” He added that none of the hospitals had him registered.

Zainab Dean

Francis Dean, 47, said his sister Zainab had called him to say firefighters had instructed her to remain in her 14th-floor flat, with her two-year-old son Jeremiah. That was in the early hours of Wednesday. He said he feared the worst.

Sheila Smith

Adam Smith appealed for information about his 84-year-old mother, Sheila. She is believed to have been living at flat 132 in the building.

Nadia Choucair

Council records showed that Nadia and Malak Choucair were living in flat 193. Nadia, 33, worked as a nursery officer at the Avondale Park primary school. She is understood to have lived on one of the top floors with her husband, three daughters and mother-in-law. A resident, called Hulya, who lives close by told the Telegraph: “Nadia’s daughter rang a friend saying: ‘I don’t think I’m going to make it.’ It’s heartbreaking.”

Nura Jamel

Friends said she had contacted them from the building as the fire took hold. According to records, Jamel was living at flat 192. Hibo Yussuf, 35, a friend of the missing woman, told the Telegraph: “We’ve heard that Nura’s daughter is in hospital but hasn’t been able to get hold of her mum. Nura called one of her friends to say: ‘Forgive me, the fire is here, I’m dying.’”</s>A massive fire engulfed a residential high-rise building in London on Wednesday, leaving at least 74 people injured and 12 dead.

The London Fire Brigade dispatched at least 40 fire engines, 20 ambulance crews and more than 200 firefighters in an effort to battle the conflagration, at the 24-story Grenfell Tower in West London.

Authorities said they are monitoring the stability of the charred structure, but that firefighters have managed to search "most" of the building for remaining people.

The Metropolitan Police Service confirmed the rising death toll at a press conference Wednesday night.

"This is an unprecedented incident," London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton told reporters. "In my 29 years of being a firefighter, I have never, ever seen anything of this scale."

As of 11:45 a.m. local time Wednesday, 64 people were transported to six hospitals across London for a range of injuries related to the fire, and 20 of them are in critical condition. An additional 10 people made their own way to hospitals, bringing the total of those treated to 74, according to London Ambulance Service director of operations Paul Woodrow.

"Over 100 of our medics have been working hard to respond to this incident, including ambulance crews, advanced paramedics, advanced trauma teams from London's Air Ambulance and those staff managing the incident in our special operations center," Woodrow said in a statement late Wednesday morning. "Our hazardous area response teams are also on scene, who carry specialist equipment, including breathing apparatus. We've been treating patients for a range of injuries as well as for smoke inhalation."

PHOTO: Smoke billows from a fire that has engulfed the 24-story Grenfell Tower in west London, June 14, 2017. (Victoria Jones/PA via AP Photo) More

It is not known yet what caused the blaze, which firefighters continue to battle. The fire has left the building almost totally charred, and there were fears in the morning about the building's structural integrity, as it appeared to lean slightly to one side.

The tower, built in 1974, contains 120 apartments, according to its management company, Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation.

One resident told ABC News that he woke up smelling smoke and thought his laptop was overheating. He said it seemed as if the fire had been burning for at least 30 minutes before the building's fire alarms went off.

The resident, who said he was initially told to stay in place, said he fled the building once he realized how thick the smoke was. Regrettably, he said, he was unable to carry his elderly father and fears that he may not have survived.

London Fire Brigade Assistant Commissioner Dan Daly said in a statement that "firefighters wearing breathing apparatus are working extremely hard in very difficult conditions to tackle this fire. This is a large and very serious incident, and we have deployed numerous resources and specialist appliances."

In this photo taken from aerial video, smoke rises from a high-rise apartment building on fire in London, Wednesday, June 14, 2017. A massive fire raced through the 27-story high-rise apartment building in west London early Wednesday, sending at leas (The Associated Press) More

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was "truly devastated" and warned that the numbers of dead and injured could increase.

"My heart goes out to everyone affected. I am sad to confirm that we now know there have been fatalities and more than 50 people have been taken to hospitals," he said in a statement early Wednesday. "The fire service is dealing with a rapidly changing situation and these numbers [of dead and injured] are likely to rise."

The Metropolitan Police Service said that at 1:16 a.m. local time it received "reports of a large fire at a block of flats in the Lancaster West Estate, W11."

Some social media users posted photos and videos of the fire as it continued to rage after sunrise, and others posted images of loved ones who are unaccounted for.

PHOTO: Firefighters battle a massive fire that raged in a high-rise apartment building in London, June 14, 2017. (Matt Dunham/AP Photo) More

Story continues</s>Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption One eyewitness said he saw people blinking lights within the building

At least six people have died after a huge fire raged through the night at a west London 24-storey tower block, and police expect that number to rise.

Eyewitnesses described people trapped in the burning Grenfell Tower, in north Kensington, screaming for help and yelling for their children to be saved.

Firefighters, who rescued many people, were called at 00:54 BST and are still trying to put out the fire.

Police say there may still be people in the building who are unaccounted for.

The ambulance service said 68 patients had been taken to six hospitals across London, with 18 in critical care. A further 10 patients made their own way to hospital.

During the night, eyewitnesses said they saw lights - thought to be mobile phones or torches - flashing at the top of the block of flats, and trapped residents coming to their windows - some holding children.

It is understood that "several hundred" people would have been in the block when the fire broke out shortly after midnight, most of them sleeping.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Mickey, a resident of Grenfell Tower: 'It was like a horror movie'

Commander Stuart Cundy, of the Metropolitan Police, said the recovery operation would be "complex and lengthy", and the number of fatalities was expected to rise.

He declined to give any details of the number of people who may be missing.

He said it was likely to be some time before police could identify the victims, adding that it was too early to speculate on the cause of the fire.

An emergency number - 0800 0961 233 - has been set up for anyone concerned about friends or family.

At 13:00 BST, Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton said firefighters expected to be on the scene for at least another 24 hours.

She said there were concerns that people were still inside the tower and she urged all residents to make sure they had reported themselves to police so that the authorities know they are safe.

'Absolutely appalling'

Prime Minister Theresa May is "deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life", said Downing Street.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt praised the "heroic" response from the emergency services and the NHS hospital staff "working tirelessly to help".

Meanwhile, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is to demand a government statement in Parliament on Thursday on the tragedy, the BBC understands.

There must be a "full inquiry" into the fire, newly-elected Kensington MP Emma Dent Coad told the BBC.

Speaking outside the Rugby Portobello Trust emergency centre, the Labour MP said the fire was "absolutely appalling".

"The ferocity of that fire was extraordinary and terrifying," she said. "This must never happen again."

Police and fire minister Nick Hurd was due to chair a cross-party meeting to look at how the government can assist the emergency services and local authorities.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption David Benjamin says he was woken by a neighbour banging on the door

Paul Munakr, who lives on the seventh floor, managed to escape.

"As I was going down the stairs, there were firefighters, truly amazing firefighters that were actually going upstairs, to the fire, trying to get as many people out the building as possible," he told the BBC.

He said he was alerted to the fire not by fire alarms but by people on the street below, shouting "don't jump, don't jump".

Eyewitness Jody Martin said: "I watched one person falling out, I watched another woman holding her baby out the window... hearing screams.

"I was yelling at everyone to get down and they were saying 'We can't leave our apartments, the smoke is too bad on the corridors.'"

Michael Paramasivan, who lives on the seventh floor with his girlfriend and young daughter, said he ignored official advice to stay in your home.

"If we had stayed in that flat, we would've perished. My gut instinct told me just to get the girls out. I wrapped the little one up because of the smoke and I just got them out."

Another resident, Zoe, who lives on the fourth floor, said she was woken by a neighbour banging on her door.

"The whole landing was thick with smoke. The smoke alarms weren't going off but the way it spread so quickly from the fourth floor, all the way up to the 23rd floor was scary."

At the scene

Image caption Mirna, Fatima and Zainnb are among those missing

By Lucy Manning, BBC News

They have lost their homes and for some, tragically their relatives.

At times there is the sound of sobbing as the word goes round that someone is missing, someone is feared dead.

I've spent the day inside the community centre where survivors have gathered.

Downstairs in the hall families sit at tables and wait for news.

One family told me they hadn't heard from their brother, sister and three children - Mirna, Fatima and Zainnb. Other relatives were out searching hospitals. There was still no news.

Outside the centre, Sawsan was with a group of women. For one it was too much, she was on the floor crying. Sawsan hasn't heard from her mum, sister, brother-in-law and nieces. She spoke to them when the fire started but nothing since.

Inside the centre, families are being helped with food, housing and medical treatment. It's busy and everyone is helping. Just not with the one thing they need - information about whether their relatives are safe.

Christabel told me how lucky her father had been. He tried to fight the fire but made it out alive.

Ed was saved when a friend called him to tell him to get out the building. "I'm lucky" he says. But they have lost everything.

Grenfell Tower, built in 1974, is part of the Lancaster West Estate, a sprawling inner-city social housing complex of almost 1,000 homes.

Robert Black, chief executive of the tower's management company, the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation, said: "The fire at Grenfell Tower is devastating and the reports of injury and losses of life absolutely heartbreaking.

"Along with my colleagues, I have been supporting residents since the early hours, working with the emergency services and the community."

The BBC's Andy Moore, who was at the scene through the night, described watching debris falling from the building, and hearing explosions and breaking glass.

Grenfell Tower, North Kensington 127 flats

24 storeys

20 residential levels

4 mixed levels of community areas and residential flats

2016 refurbishment completed AFP

Image copyright PA Image caption London fire crews said it was a "large and very serious incident"

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption There are 120 flats in the residential block

The London Fire Brigade said a structural engineer had checked the building and determined it was not in danger of collapse and that rescue teams were safe to be inside.

Initially, it was feared that the building, which appears to be gutted, could collapse.

Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was devastated by the horrific scenes, attended by more than 250 firefighters and 100 ambulance medics.

Questions will need to be answered over the safety of tower blocks, he told BBC Radio.

"We can't have a situation where people's safety is put at risk because of bad advice being given or if it is the case, as has been alleged, of tower blocks not being properly serviced or maintained," he said.

Matt Wrack, of the Fire Brigades Union said something had clearly gone badly wrong with fire prevention procedures at the building.

Firefighters would normally fight a fire in a tower block from the inside, going up the fire escape, and fighting using the internal dry-rising mains, he said, but that's not been possible in this case.

Construction firm Rydon said recent building work which it carried out on the block "met all required building control, fire regulation and health and safety standards".

Image caption Refurbishment work completed in 2016 included more residential areas in the four lower 'podium' levels

Appeals are being made on social media for news of missing friends and relatives, who might have been caught in the blaze.

Emergency rest centres have opened for those now homeless at Latymer Community Centre, St Clement's Church, Harrow Club and Rugby Portobello Trust. There are also local collections under way for spare clothes, toys, blankets and toiletries.

People are being advised by police to stay away from the area, where roads remain closed and nearby residents have been evacuated as a precaution.

Image copyright EPA Image caption The London Fire Brigade said a structural engineer had checked the building

Image copyright AFP/Getty Images Image caption More than 70 people have received treatment in hospital

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Smoke could be seen from miles away

Safety concerns

Grenfell Tower underwent a two-year £10m refurbishment as part of a wider transformation of the estate, that was completed last year.

Work included new exterior cladding and a communal heating system.

The 24-storey tower, containing about 120 flats, is managed by the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO) on behalf of the council.

Before and during the refurbishment, the local Grenfell Action Group claimed that the block constituted a fire risk and residents warned that site access for emergency vehicles was "severely restricted".

Construction firm Rydon, which carried out the refurbishment, said it was "shocked to hear of the devastating fire" and added that the work "met all required building control, fire regulation and health and safety standards".

Council leader Nick Paget-Brown said the buildings were regularly inspected, but a "thorough investigation" was needed.

Read more on safety concerns here.

Get news from the BBC in your inbox, each weekday morning</s>Smoke and flames rise from Grenfell Tower in London on Wednesday.

Matt Dunham / AP</s>London firefighters fight massive apartment building fire fearing some might be trapped inside

45 fire engines and over 200 firefighters were called to the scene.

The fire involved a 27 story Grenfell Tower building in the North Kensington area.

Two people have been treated on the scene, but no other injuries are reported. Firefighters fear there may be others trapped inside.</s>A number of people are dead after a huge blaze devastated a 24-storey apartment block in west London. At least 200 firefighters and 40 engines are on the scene of a massive fire at Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, near Notting Hill</s>London — Firefighters were battling a massive fire and evacuating residents from a burning 27-storey building in London early on Wednesday morning.

One side of the building appeared to be in flames, and 45 fire engines and 200 firefighters were called to the scene.

The London Fire Brigade tweeted that the fire involved the second to the top floor and a number of people were being treated for a range of injuries.

The building is the Grenfell Tower in the North Kensington area.

George Clarke, the presenter of television show Amazing Spaces, told Radio 5 Live he was covered in ash even though he was 100 metres from the scene.

He said he saw people waving flashlights from the top levels of the building and saw rescuers "doing an incredible job" trying to get people out.</s>More than 200 firefighters are battling a giant blaze in a high-rise tower block in West London.

Photos posted to social media showed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower on the Lancaster West Estate engulfed in flames.

Forty fire engines were sent to the scene.

More than 200 people live in the tower.

Authorities said at least two people were currently being treated for smoke inhalation.

More to come.</s>LONDON: A massive fire ripped through a 27-storey apartment block in west London in the early hours of Wednesday, police and fire services said.

Witnesses could hear screaming from the upper floors as the flames rose and one desperate resident could be seen waving a white cloth.

Forty fire engines and 200 firefighters had been called to the Grenfell Tower apartment block which has 120 residential units and was built in 1974.

A statement from the brigade said the fire started from the second storey of the building and spread to the top.

Police said in a statement they were called at 1:16am (0016 GMT) "to reports of a large fire at a block of flats in the Lancaster West Estate".

"Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus are working extremely hard in very difficult conditions to tackle this fire," London Fire Brigade assistant commissioner Dan Daly said. "This is a large and very serious incident and we have deployed numerous resources and specialist appliances."

Images and videos from the scene have been circulating on social media showing the huge flames.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan tweeted that a "major incident" has been declared at Grenfell Tower in Kensington.

A person was seen at a window of the residential tower block in the early hours, as firefighters tackled the blaze.

Witnesses said they heard screams for help from inside the building, The Guardian reported.

Actor and writer Tim Downie, who lives nearby, said: "It's horrendous. The whole building is engulfed in flames. It's gone. It's just a matter of time before this building collapses".

The BBC reported debris falling from the building and that explosions were heard along with the sounds of glass breaking.

Local residents had warned a year ago about a potential fire risk caused by rubbish being allowed to accumulate during improvement works.

"This matter is of particular concern as there is only one entry and exit to Grenfell Tower during the improvement works," read a blog post by the Greenfell Action Group.

"The potential for a fire to break out in the communal area on the walkway does not bear thinking about as residents would be trapped in the building with no way out," it said.
A large fire consumes the 24-storey Grenfell Tower apartment block in North Kensington, West London, with the entire building evacuated and over 40 fire engines and 200 firefighters battling the blaze. At least 17 people are dead and more people are treated for injuries, with more people possibly being trapped inside.