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One of the most extraordinary aspects of the BRE report into the Grenfell Tower disaster is that it hammers home how a fire in a single fridge-freezer can go on to consume a 24-storey building if adequate fire safety mechanisms have not been put in place to stop it.

This is an abridged version of BRE’s suggested narrative of how the inferno started and the route it took as it spread:

1 The fire began on the fourth floor

It started in Flat 16 in a fridge-freezer situated within one metre of the kitchen window. This window was in the tilt-open position. Construction of the window breached building regulations and failed to provide “any substantial barrier” to the fire taking hold in the facade outside.

2 The facade ignited

Once the flames breached the window, BRE suggests several options as to what happened next: that the flames ignited the “highly combustible” polyethylene core of the aluminium cladding; that they ignited the “combustible” foam insulation; or that they took hold of the “flammable” materials around the window frame. Or several of these things could have happened at once.

3 Flames fanned up, across and down the facade

BRE believes the fire spread up the column adjacent to the kitchen of Flat 16, assisted by “combustible components in the construction and lack of appropriate subdivision of this fuel to prevent one component involving the next”. Flames also spread laterally, aided by the same shortcomings. The impact of flames entering the cavity between the concrete and the facade was exacerbated by the lack of adequate cavity barriers. These failed to seal the gap and created what appears to be a calamitous chimney-like effect. Downward fire spread also occurred, “as a result of burning droplets of polyethylene falling and igniting combustible materials below”.

4 Fire entered the other flats

As flames fanned out across the facade they encountered windows of other flats. BRE believes the same deficient construction around the window that let the fire escape from Flat 16 now afforded it a route to spread back into the other apartments.

5 Fire burned within the flats

Once the blaze was in any one apartment, it would burn from room to room at a speed that depended on whether or not doors inside were closed. Any single flat, once caught up, “would be substantively destroyed, as a flat is normally designed to be a single fire compartment”.

6 Fire and smoke entered the lobbies and stairwell

As residents fled, the lack of door closers meant some front doors did not automatically close, allowing flames and smoke to billow out of flats into the central core, including the lobby and stairwell, impinging on the means of escape for residents further up the tower.

BRE do not provide a specific timeframe for this suggested sequencing.

Waste chute rooms could have been safe havens

The report says: “It is worthy of note that every one of the waste chute rooms has survived intact, having been protected by the fire-resisting door”.

These rooms were accessed from the lobby on each floor and situated near the stairwell.

It raises the poignant possibility that if trapped residents had sought shelter in the waste chute room on their floor, they might have been saved.

The report shows photographs from the 13th floor which contrast the fire-damaged lobby and exterior of the waste chute room door with the barely blemished interior of the waste chute room itself.

It says: “Bin chute rooms have been largely undamaged.

"Whilst the fire has been kept out of these rooms, it is unclear whether the atmosphere within these rooms would have sustained life [during the fire].”

Sprinkler system might not have made a difference

The fact that the tower had no sprinkler system means that, like many buildings erected in the Seventies, it did not conform to current building regulations which require that blocks of flats over 30 metres tall have sprinklers inside each flat. But what was the impact?

BRE says once the fire had taken hold across the facade and ignited more than four flats, a sprinkler system was “very unlikely” to have made “any appreciable difference”.

Sprinklers could only have altered the outcome if they had “prevented the fire from leaving Flat 16 and igniting the cladding”.

Yet if a sprinkler had been installed in the middle of the kitchen ceiling, they said, “it is possible the chassis of the fridge freezer might have shielded the fire from the sprinkler”. This will be tested by reconstructing the fire in Flat 16 off-site and testing a sprinkler system.

How close was the Tower to collapse?

BRE says that the fire burned “at a level of severity which would significantly impact upon the fire resistance of the structure for between nine and 12 hours”.

The original tower block, built with reinforced concrete in 1972, had floor slabs 10 inches thick and walls 12 inches thick, which tapered to eight inches from above the 13th floor.

Standard fire resistance tests show that eight-inch walls provide only six hours of fire resistance.

Victims of the Grenfell Tower fire 59 show all Victims of the Grenfell Tower fire 1/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze PA 2/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze 3/59 Five-year-old Isaac Paulos Family Handout 4/59 Logan Gomes, who was stillborn after his family escaped from the 21st floor of the Grenfell Tower AP 5/59 Victoria King, 71, and her 40-year-old daughter Alexandra Atala were among those who died in the blaze PA 6/59 A photograph of Mohamed Amied Neda as his family were forced to hold a second funeral PA 7/59 Mary Mendy 8/59 Maria Del Pilar Burton, who was rescued from the 19th floor of Grenfell Tower, has died seven months on from the blaze 9/59 Alexandra Atala, 40, the last victim to be named and pictured from the Grenfell fire Metropolitan Police 10/59 Gloria Trevisan and Marco Gottardi 11/59 Rania Ibrahim, Fethia Hassan and Hania Hassan PA 12/59 Raymond Bernard 13/59 Bassem Choucair and Nadia Choucair PA 14/59 Sirria Choucair PA 15/59 Mierna Choucair PA 16/59 Fatima Choucair died along with five other relatives PA 17/59 Mariem Elgwahry AP 18/59 Hashim Kedir, wife Nura and children Yahya, 13, left, Firdaws, 11, and Yaqub, six. 19/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 20/59 Ligaya Moore, 79, a Filipino living in the tower Met Police 21/59 Artist Khadija Saye PA 22/59 Victim: 12-year-old Jessica Urbano Ramirez was killed in the fire 23/59 Victim: Farah Hamdan, 31, pictured with her baby daughter 24/59 Mohamednur Tuccu, 44, and his three-year-old daughter Amaya Tuccu-Ahmedin PA 25/59 Berkti Haftom, 29 and Biruk Haftom, 12 Metropolitan Police 26/59 Victim: Sakina Afrasehabi, 65, died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 27/59 Fatima Afraseiabi 28/59 'Well respected': Grandmother-of-six Sheila Smith was killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze Met Police 29/59 Hamid Kani was found on the 23rd floor PA 30/59 Steve Power 31/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali Syrian Solidarity Campaign 32/59 Denis Murphy PA 33/59 Young victim: Jeremiah Deen, two, died in the blaze Met Police 34/59 Zainab Deen 35/59 Anthony Disson 36/59 Ali Yawar Jafari PA 37/59 Nora Huda 38/59 Kedir Hashim: His wife and their three children died 39/59 Hesham Rahman PA 40/59 Gary Maunders PA 41/59 Ernie Vital and his mother Marjorie PA 42/59 Amal Ahmedin and Amaya PA 43/59 Amna Mahmud Idris PA 44/59 Kamru Miah, 79, who died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 45/59 Rabeya Begum PA 46/59 Mohammed Hamid, 27, died in the fire PA 47/59 Mohammed Hanif PA 48/59 Husna Begum PA 49/59 Fathia Ali Ahmed Elsanosi PA 50/59 Vincent Chiejina PA 51/59 Abdulaziz El-Wahabi PA 52/59 Faouzia El-Wahabi, 41 PA 53/59 Yasin El-Wahabi, 20 PA 54/59 Nur Huda El-Wahabi, 16, PA 55/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 56/59 Khadija Khaloufi PA 57/59 Omar Belkadi, 32, and Farah Hamdan, 31 PA 58/59 Deborah Lamprell 59/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali PA 1/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze PA 2/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze 3/59 Five-year-old Isaac Paulos Family Handout 4/59 Logan Gomes, who was stillborn after his family escaped from the 21st floor of the Grenfell Tower AP 5/59 Victoria King, 71, and her 40-year-old daughter Alexandra Atala were among those who died in the blaze PA 6/59 A photograph of Mohamed Amied Neda as his family were forced to hold a second funeral PA 7/59 Mary Mendy 8/59 Maria Del Pilar Burton, who was rescued from the 19th floor of Grenfell Tower, has died seven months on from the blaze 9/59 Alexandra Atala, 40, the last victim to be named and pictured from the Grenfell fire Metropolitan Police 10/59 Gloria Trevisan and Marco Gottardi 11/59 Rania Ibrahim, Fethia Hassan and Hania Hassan PA 12/59 Raymond Bernard 13/59 Bassem Choucair and Nadia Choucair PA 14/59 Sirria Choucair PA 15/59 Mierna Choucair PA 16/59 Fatima Choucair died along with five other relatives PA 17/59 Mariem Elgwahry AP 18/59 Hashim Kedir, wife Nura and children Yahya, 13, left, Firdaws, 11, and Yaqub, six. 19/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 20/59 Ligaya Moore, 79, a Filipino living in the tower Met Police 21/59 Artist Khadija Saye PA 22/59 Victim: 12-year-old Jessica Urbano Ramirez was killed in the fire 23/59 Victim: Farah Hamdan, 31, pictured with her baby daughter 24/59 Mohamednur Tuccu, 44, and his three-year-old daughter Amaya Tuccu-Ahmedin PA 25/59 Berkti Haftom, 29 and Biruk Haftom, 12 Metropolitan Police 26/59 Victim: Sakina Afrasehabi, 65, died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 27/59 Fatima Afraseiabi 28/59 'Well respected': Grandmother-of-six Sheila Smith was killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze Met Police 29/59 Hamid Kani was found on the 23rd floor PA 30/59 Steve Power 31/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali Syrian Solidarity Campaign 32/59 Denis Murphy PA 33/59 Young victim: Jeremiah Deen, two, died in the blaze Met Police 34/59 Zainab Deen 35/59 Anthony Disson 36/59 Ali Yawar Jafari PA 37/59 Nora Huda 38/59 Kedir Hashim: His wife and their three children died 39/59 Hesham Rahman PA 40/59 Gary Maunders PA 41/59 Ernie Vital and his mother Marjorie PA 42/59 Amal Ahmedin and Amaya PA 43/59 Amna Mahmud Idris PA 44/59 Kamru Miah, 79, who died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 45/59 Rabeya Begum PA 46/59 Mohammed Hamid, 27, died in the fire PA 47/59 Mohammed Hanif PA 48/59 Husna Begum PA 49/59 Fathia Ali Ahmed Elsanosi PA 50/59 Vincent Chiejina PA 51/59 Abdulaziz El-Wahabi PA 52/59 Faouzia El-Wahabi, 41 PA 53/59 Yasin El-Wahabi, 20 PA 54/59 Nur Huda El-Wahabi, 16, PA 55/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 56/59 Khadija Khaloufi PA 57/59 Omar Belkadi, 32, and Farah Hamdan, 31 PA 58/59 Deborah Lamprell 59/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali PA

However, the thicker lower walls and floors exceeded the girth for which tests have been conducted. This appears to have saved the building from collapse. BRE conducted independent tests to assess “spalling” (break-up and buckling) of the concrete and exposure of the building’s reinforced steelwork to determine how close to collapse it was.

It concluded: “The physical evidence confirms parts of the structure very close to their point of failure.” Had the building been built to the lower requirements of current building regulations, “it is likely the tower would have collapsed”.</s>ES News email The latest headlines in your inbox ES News email The latest headlines in your inbox Enter your email address Continue Please enter an email address Email address is invalid Fill out this field Email address is invalid You already have an account. Please log in Register with your social account or click here to log in I would like to receive lunchtime headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts, by email Update newsletter preferences

A report prepared as part of the police investigation into the Grenfell Tower fire has uncovered calamitous deficiencies in the installation of the windows, cavity barriers and cladding system, and their failure to meet building regulations.

The 210-page interim document, by fire investigation experts BRE Global, is set to dramatically assist the Metropolitan police in their wide-ranging investigation. It was leaked exclusively to the Standard and recounts in forensic detail how the original concrete building was turned from a safe structure into a tinderbox by the refurbishment between 2014 and 2016.

It not only finds the cladding material and insulation was combustible, but also exposes hitherto unknown areas of incompetence relating to the design and installation of the windows and cavity barriers. The latter are critical in closing the gap between the inner and outer skins of the building to prevent a chimney-like effect in the event of a blaze.

It reveals how in the early hours of June 14 last year, the fire started in a single fridge-freezer in a single flat on the fourth floor; travelled through an open window within a metre of the fridge; took hold in the cladding; and consumed an entire 24-storey, 70-metre-high building. A total of 71 lives were lost.

Victims of the Grenfell Tower fire 59 show all Victims of the Grenfell Tower fire 1/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze PA 2/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze 3/59 Five-year-old Isaac Paulos Family Handout 4/59 Logan Gomes, who was stillborn after his family escaped from the 21st floor of the Grenfell Tower AP 5/59 Victoria King, 71, and her 40-year-old daughter Alexandra Atala were among those who died in the blaze PA 6/59 A photograph of Mohamed Amied Neda as his family were forced to hold a second funeral PA 7/59 Mary Mendy 8/59 Maria Del Pilar Burton, who was rescued from the 19th floor of Grenfell Tower, has died seven months on from the blaze 9/59 Alexandra Atala, 40, the last victim to be named and pictured from the Grenfell fire Metropolitan Police 10/59 Gloria Trevisan and Marco Gottardi 11/59 Rania Ibrahim, Fethia Hassan and Hania Hassan PA 12/59 Raymond Bernard 13/59 Bassem Choucair and Nadia Choucair PA 14/59 Sirria Choucair PA 15/59 Mierna Choucair PA 16/59 Fatima Choucair died along with five other relatives PA 17/59 Mariem Elgwahry AP 18/59 Hashim Kedir, wife Nura and children Yahya, 13, left, Firdaws, 11, and Yaqub, six. 19/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 20/59 Ligaya Moore, 79, a Filipino living in the tower Met Police 21/59 Artist Khadija Saye PA 22/59 Victim: 12-year-old Jessica Urbano Ramirez was killed in the fire 23/59 Victim: Farah Hamdan, 31, pictured with her baby daughter 24/59 Mohamednur Tuccu, 44, and his three-year-old daughter Amaya Tuccu-Ahmedin PA 25/59 Berkti Haftom, 29 and Biruk Haftom, 12 Metropolitan Police 26/59 Victim: Sakina Afrasehabi, 65, died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 27/59 Fatima Afraseiabi 28/59 'Well respected': Grandmother-of-six Sheila Smith was killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze Met Police 29/59 Hamid Kani was found on the 23rd floor PA 30/59 Steve Power 31/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali Syrian Solidarity Campaign 32/59 Denis Murphy PA 33/59 Young victim: Jeremiah Deen, two, died in the blaze Met Police 34/59 Zainab Deen 35/59 Anthony Disson 36/59 Ali Yawar Jafari PA 37/59 Nora Huda 38/59 Kedir Hashim: His wife and their three children died 39/59 Hesham Rahman PA 40/59 Gary Maunders PA 41/59 Ernie Vital and his mother Marjorie PA 42/59 Amal Ahmedin and Amaya PA 43/59 Amna Mahmud Idris PA 44/59 Kamru Miah, 79, who died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 45/59 Rabeya Begum PA 46/59 Mohammed Hamid, 27, died in the fire PA 47/59 Mohammed Hanif PA 48/59 Husna Begum PA 49/59 Fathia Ali Ahmed Elsanosi PA 50/59 Vincent Chiejina PA 51/59 Abdulaziz El-Wahabi PA 52/59 Faouzia El-Wahabi, 41 PA 53/59 Yasin El-Wahabi, 20 PA 54/59 Nur Huda El-Wahabi, 16, PA 55/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 56/59 Khadija Khaloufi PA 57/59 Omar Belkadi, 32, and Farah Hamdan, 31 PA 58/59 Deborah Lamprell 59/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali PA 1/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze PA 2/59 Final death toll: Just some of the victims who were killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze 3/59 Five-year-old Isaac Paulos Family Handout 4/59 Logan Gomes, who was stillborn after his family escaped from the 21st floor of the Grenfell Tower AP 5/59 Victoria King, 71, and her 40-year-old daughter Alexandra Atala were among those who died in the blaze PA 6/59 A photograph of Mohamed Amied Neda as his family were forced to hold a second funeral PA 7/59 Mary Mendy 8/59 Maria Del Pilar Burton, who was rescued from the 19th floor of Grenfell Tower, has died seven months on from the blaze 9/59 Alexandra Atala, 40, the last victim to be named and pictured from the Grenfell fire Metropolitan Police 10/59 Gloria Trevisan and Marco Gottardi 11/59 Rania Ibrahim, Fethia Hassan and Hania Hassan PA 12/59 Raymond Bernard 13/59 Bassem Choucair and Nadia Choucair PA 14/59 Sirria Choucair PA 15/59 Mierna Choucair PA 16/59 Fatima Choucair died along with five other relatives PA 17/59 Mariem Elgwahry AP 18/59 Hashim Kedir, wife Nura and children Yahya, 13, left, Firdaws, 11, and Yaqub, six. 19/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 20/59 Ligaya Moore, 79, a Filipino living in the tower Met Police 21/59 Artist Khadija Saye PA 22/59 Victim: 12-year-old Jessica Urbano Ramirez was killed in the fire 23/59 Victim: Farah Hamdan, 31, pictured with her baby daughter 24/59 Mohamednur Tuccu, 44, and his three-year-old daughter Amaya Tuccu-Ahmedin PA 25/59 Berkti Haftom, 29 and Biruk Haftom, 12 Metropolitan Police 26/59 Victim: Sakina Afrasehabi, 65, died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 27/59 Fatima Afraseiabi 28/59 'Well respected': Grandmother-of-six Sheila Smith was killed in the Grenfell Tower blaze Met Police 29/59 Hamid Kani was found on the 23rd floor PA 30/59 Steve Power 31/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali Syrian Solidarity Campaign 32/59 Denis Murphy PA 33/59 Young victim: Jeremiah Deen, two, died in the blaze Met Police 34/59 Zainab Deen 35/59 Anthony Disson 36/59 Ali Yawar Jafari PA 37/59 Nora Huda 38/59 Kedir Hashim: His wife and their three children died 39/59 Hesham Rahman PA 40/59 Gary Maunders PA 41/59 Ernie Vital and his mother Marjorie PA 42/59 Amal Ahmedin and Amaya PA 43/59 Amna Mahmud Idris PA 44/59 Kamru Miah, 79, who died in the Grenfell Tower fire PA 45/59 Rabeya Begum PA 46/59 Mohammed Hamid, 27, died in the fire PA 47/59 Mohammed Hanif PA 48/59 Husna Begum PA 49/59 Fathia Ali Ahmed Elsanosi PA 50/59 Vincent Chiejina PA 51/59 Abdulaziz El-Wahabi PA 52/59 Faouzia El-Wahabi, 41 PA 53/59 Yasin El-Wahabi, 20 PA 54/59 Nur Huda El-Wahabi, 16, PA 55/59 Mehdi El-Wahabi, 8, lived on the 21st floor of Grenfell Tower Met Police 56/59 Khadija Khaloufi PA 57/59 Omar Belkadi, 32, and Farah Hamdan, 31 PA 58/59 Deborah Lamprell 59/59 Mohammed Al-Haj Ali PA

For the first time, the truth of how the refurbishment fell short of building regulations, and allowed a catastrophe to happen, is laid bare.

The first conclusion of the report is that the fire would not have spread beyond Flat 16 — the flat of origin — and would not have claimed even a single life if the original facade of the building had not been re-clad.

It states that the 2014-16 refurbishment failed, in several fundamental areas, to meet fire safety standards set out in the building regulations — known as Approved Document B. Taken together, these areas proved critical for the rapid spread of flames across the length and breadth of the building.

The report, dated 31 January 2018, says: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection.

“The original facade of Grenfell Tower, comprising exposed concrete and, given its age, likely timber or metal frame windows, would not have provided a medium for fire spread up the external surface. In BRE’s opinion … there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.”

The experts found instead that “deficiencies” in the construction of the new facade provided fuel for the fire to spread — and that it did so with such ferocity that if the original building had been built to less stringent modern standards of fire resistance, “it is likely the Tower would have collapsed, whether fully or partially”. The report identifies five significant breaches of building regulations that appear directly implicated in the loss of life:

Gaps that fanned fire

The cavity barriers — which in the event of fire are meant to expand and seal the gap between the concrete surface of the building and the cladding insulation — were of “insufficient size specification” to perform this vital function.

Some cavity barriers were installed “upside down” or “back to front”, further retarding their effectiveness.

They were “designed to close a gap of 25mm”, but the actual gap “measured up to 50mm”.

The result was to create a catastrophic chimney-like effect in the gap between the cladding and the concrete surface that “provided a route for fire spread”.

Window frames that helped flames spread

The window frames were “significantly narrower than the gap between the concrete surfaces of the columns, 150mm narrower”, leaving large gaps at either end.

These spaces were filled by a rubberised membrane, rigid foam insulation and uPVC lightweight plastic panels — but crucially “none of the materials used would be capable of providing 30 minutes fire resistance”.

The result was “a direct route for fire spread around the window frame into the cavity of the facade … and from the facade back into flats”.

This has added importance, as the first obstacle the fire encountered as it escaped from Flat 16 was the window frame which provided “fuel” instead of a barrier. BRE says: “The construction of the window did not provide any substantial barrier to fire taking hold on the facade outside.”

Key pages from leaked Grenfell Tower report - In pictures 13 show all Key pages from leaked Grenfell Tower report - In pictures 1/13 01 2/13 02 3/13 03 4/13 04 5/13 05 6/13 06 7/13 07 8/13 08 9/13 09 10/13 10 11/13 11 12/13 12 13/13 13 1/13 01 2/13 02 3/13 03 4/13 04 5/13 05 6/13 06 7/13 07 8/13 08 9/13 09 10/13 10 11/13 11 12/13 12 13/13 13

Combustible insulation

The insulation used was “combustible” and “provided a medium for fire spread up, across and within sections of the facade”.

BRE notes that the 75mm insulation foam used on most of the spandrel beams had “no markings to identify the manufacturer of the foam”, unlike the 100mm Celotex foam insulation used on the columns. BRE records this oddity of the mystery manufacturer but does not further distinguish between the foam types, concluding both were “combustible”.

Flammable core

The aluminium composite material used in the facade had a polyethylene (plastic) core that “appears to be highly combustible” and “appears to have provided a medium for fire spread up and across the facade”.

Lack of door closers

The “absence of door closers” on many front doors to flats, contrary to building regulations, resulted in a significant number of doors being inadvertently left open when residents fled.

“Where this occurred, the fire in each flat appears to have emitted large quantities of smoke and later fire directly into the immediate lobby, and these have gone on to affect the lifts and single stairwell”.

This is a major failing because it created “shortcomings in compartmentation” of the fire and would have affected residents’ life chances as they sought to escape down the single stairwell.

BRE notes that individual breaches relating to the cladding system assume far greater importance when “considered in combination as opposed to when they occur in isolation”.

Firefighting weaknesses

Firefighting facilities were “deficient”, hampered by poor access and lack of installation of a wet rising main.

There was room for just “a single fire engine” on the hard standing at the base of the east side of the tower, as other sides of the tower were not accessible due to landscaping. This single fire engine would be “unlikely to provide sufficient pressure and flow of water for firefighting at the top of the tower” using the dry rising main.

The report says: “A building of Grenfell’s height ought to have been fitted with a wet rising main [which contains water at all times] as part of the refurbishment; instead the existing dry rising main [which has to be supplied from a fire engine] was extended and modified.” BRE cites two other breaches of building regulations — the absence of a sprinkler system and the single stairwell being 8cm too narrow. However it does not necessarily regard these weaknesses as directly responsible for loss of life. It adds that the stairwell would have been “difficult and expensive to change as part of any refurbishment”.

Notting Hill Grenfell Tower Fire - In pictures 37 show all Notting Hill Grenfell Tower Fire - In pictures 1/37 A blaze rages through Grenfell Tower block in Notting Hill Jeremy Selwyn 2/37 Aerial view of the fire at Grenfell Tower, Notting Hill Jason Hawkes 3/37 Jeremy Selwyn 4/37 Aerial view of the fire at Grenfell Tower, Notting Hill Jason Hawkes 5/37 Jeremy Selwyn 6/37 A firefighter investigates a floor after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower PA 7/37 Exhausted firefighter rest on steps of houses after ours of tackling the blaze Alex Lentati 8/37 Jeremy Selwyn 9/37 10/37 Residents wave frantically at a window during the blaze Nigel Howard 11/37 Emergency personnel operate during the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 27-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA 12/37 A police officer helps to evacuate a local resident from close to the scene of a serious fire in a tower block at Latimer Road in West London Reuters 13/37 Debris and ash surrounding Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate, Latimer road Jeremy Selwyn 14/37 A fleet of ambulances at the scene ready to deal with the injured AFP/Getty Images 15/37 A firefighter rests during the battle against the blaze at Grenfell Tower Jeremy Selwyn 16/37 Firefighters prepare to enter the building to tackle the flames EPA 17/37 Nigel Howard 18/37 Smoke billows from a fire that has engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA 19/37 Flames engulf the tower block in Notting Hill AFP/Getty Images 20/37 This shocking image shows flames engulfing the 27 storey tower Jeremy Selwyn 21/37 Police and Emergency services at the scene of a major fire in Notting Hill after a block of flats Grenfell Tower is engulfed in flames Nigel Howard 22/37 A person peers out of a window from the building on fire in London AP 23/37 Firefighters react as a huge fire engulfs the Grenfell Tower AFP/Getty Images 24/37 Smoke rises from the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA 25/37 Smoke billows across the London skyline follwing a fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate Alex Lentati 26/37 Aw omen react followign the blaze at Grenfell Tower Alex Lentati 27/37 Smoke billows across the London skyline follwing a fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate Jeremy Selwyn 28/37 A water jet douses the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block seen through a fence in North Kensington EPA 29/37 Young children wear protective face masks near the burning 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 30/37 Two men hug within the security cordon as Grenfell Tower is engulfed by fire AFP/Getty Images 31/37 A man (circled) looks from a window as smoke pours from a fire that has engulfed the 27-storey Grenfell Tower PA 32/37 Smoke billows across the London skyline follwing a fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate Alex Lentati 33/37 Firefighters on the scene at Grenfell Tower on Latimer Road early this morning Alex Lentati 34/37 A view of debris from the Grenfell Tower fire covering a football pitch EPA 35/37 Aerial view of the closed of Westway follwing a the fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate, Latimer Road. Jeremy Selwyn 36/37 Fire fighters tackle the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 37/37 A local resident is carried to receive some medical aid at a community centre close to a fire that has engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower PA 1/37 A blaze rages through Grenfell Tower block in Notting Hill Jeremy Selwyn 2/37 Aerial view of the fire at Grenfell Tower, Notting Hill Jason Hawkes 3/37 Jeremy Selwyn 4/37 Aerial view of the fire at Grenfell Tower, Notting Hill Jason Hawkes 5/37 Jeremy Selwyn 6/37 A firefighter investigates a floor after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower PA 7/37 Exhausted firefighter rest on steps of houses after ours of tackling the blaze Alex Lentati 8/37 Jeremy Selwyn 9/37 10/37 Residents wave frantically at a window during the blaze Nigel Howard 11/37 Emergency personnel operate during the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 27-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA 12/37 A police officer helps to evacuate a local resident from close to the scene of a serious fire in a tower block at Latimer Road in West London Reuters 13/37 Debris and ash surrounding Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate, Latimer road Jeremy Selwyn 14/37 A fleet of ambulances at the scene ready to deal with the injured AFP/Getty Images 15/37 A firefighter rests during the battle against the blaze at Grenfell Tower Jeremy Selwyn 16/37 Firefighters prepare to enter the building to tackle the flames EPA 17/37 Nigel Howard 18/37 Smoke billows from a fire that has engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London PA 19/37 Flames engulf the tower block in Notting Hill AFP/Getty Images 20/37 This shocking image shows flames engulfing the 27 storey tower Jeremy Selwyn 21/37 Police and Emergency services at the scene of a major fire in Notting Hill after a block of flats Grenfell Tower is engulfed in flames Nigel Howard 22/37 A person peers out of a window from the building on fire in London AP 23/37 Firefighters react as a huge fire engulfs the Grenfell Tower AFP/Getty Images 24/37 Smoke rises from the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block in North Kensington, London EPA 25/37 Smoke billows across the London skyline follwing a fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate Alex Lentati 26/37 Aw omen react followign the blaze at Grenfell Tower Alex Lentati 27/37 Smoke billows across the London skyline follwing a fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate Jeremy Selwyn 28/37 A water jet douses the fire at the Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block seen through a fence in North Kensington EPA 29/37 Young children wear protective face masks near the burning 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 30/37 Two men hug within the security cordon as Grenfell Tower is engulfed by fire AFP/Getty Images 31/37 A man (circled) looks from a window as smoke pours from a fire that has engulfed the 27-storey Grenfell Tower PA 32/37 Smoke billows across the London skyline follwing a fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate Alex Lentati 33/37 Firefighters on the scene at Grenfell Tower on Latimer Road early this morning Alex Lentati 34/37 A view of debris from the Grenfell Tower fire covering a football pitch EPA 35/37 Aerial view of the closed of Westway follwing a the fire at Grenfell Tower in the West Lancaster estate, Latimer Road. Jeremy Selwyn 36/37 Fire fighters tackle the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 37/37 A local resident is carried to receive some medical aid at a community centre close to a fire that has engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower PA

The draft report was submitted to the Metropolitan Police Service so that its interim conclusions could speed up “other parts of the MPS-led investigation”, including gathering documentation and interviewing contractors. BRE was asked to achieve three aims:

“To establish the circumstances surrounding as many deaths resulting from the fire as possible;”

“To establish any failings of duty of care owed to victims of the fire, both fatalities and surviving residents;”

“To provide expert witness support in relation to any criminal prosecution, public inquiry or inquest.”

The Standard understands, from a separate source, that the police investigation has already downloaded over 30 million emails and documents from the servers of Kensington and Chelsea council and the Tenant Management Organisation, and that they are beginning to trace and interview about 500 key contractors and sub-contractors involved in the refurbishment.

The on-site work that formed the basis for the report involved fingertip searches and the examination of all 129 flats, and was scheduled to run until the end of March. Evaluations of the condition of each flat on the fourth, fifth, sixth and 23rd floors are in this draft — with the “damage overview” ranging from “total destruction” to “undamaged”.

Reports on flats on other floors were still being drafted. Further tests of the fire resistance of doors and lifts, and safety of gas installation, were still being carried out at the date of the draft.

The report could also feed into the public inquiry, due to start on May 21.

A specialist architect shown the document said: “The question is: could this fire have been avoided? This damning report is saying it absolutely could have been and that the refurb was to blame.

“Construction around the cavity barriers and windows was particularly poor. The uPVC used in the panels to close the gap around the windows was a terrible mistake. It has no fire integrity and provided a vulnerable route for fire to spread.

“These findings could result in people going to prison. But the report has left open the vital question as to whether the design or the installation was at fault, whether the works were approved and/or inspected, or whether it was a combination of all of these.

“The buck stops with the owner of the building Kensington and Chelsea council, and its management organisation, which have ultimate duty of care. Some people will not be sleeping well at night once this report is made public. You read it and think: heads are going to roll.”

Building Research Establishment is a former government laboratory that was privatised in 1997 and is now owned by charitable organisation BRE Trust. Based in Watford, it provides research, testing, certification and standards.

A Kensington and Chelsea Council spokesperson said: “We think the public inquiry and the police investigation are the right places for testing all the evidence as a whole. The Council is clear – we have handed over thousands of documents – we are committed to finding the truth. We hope full disclosure of all the evidence, tested by the inquiry judge, will deliver the answers to ensure this never happens again.”

A spokesman for survivor group Grenfell United "The report in the Evening Standard is shocking but it is not surprising to those of us that lived in the tower. It was clear to us the refurbishment was shoddy and second rate. We raised concerns time and time again. We were not just ignored but bullied to keep quiet.

"That a refurbishment could make our homes dangerous and unsafe shows that the contractors put profit before lives. It's an industry that is broken.

"It's also an industry that has been allowed to get away with this behaviour. Six people died in a fire at Lakanal House in 2009 and the Government failed to act and make changes to regulations that would have stopped a fire like that happening again. Tonight we know people are going to sleep in homes with dangerous cladding on them.

"It is vital the police investigation and the public Inquiry uncover everything that led to the fire and that the Government now actually act so that this can never happen again.”</s>The Grenfell Tower fire that claimed 71 lives would not have spread beyond a single flat if it had started before a refurbishment that saw it clad in flammable materials, a leaked report has revealed.

The findings by fire investigation experts BRE Global, uncovered by the London Evening Standard, reveal serious deficiencies in the installation of the windows, cavity barriers and cladding system, and their failure to meet building regulations.

It states that the fire would have remained confined to Flat 16 — the flat of origin — and would not have claimed even a single life if the original facade of the building had not been re-clad between 2014 and 2016.

We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. From 15p €0.18 $0.18 USD 0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras.

The draft report, dated 31 January 2018, was submitted to the Metropolitan Police Service as part of its investigation.

It finds not only that the cladding material and insulation was combustible, but also serious deficiencies in the design and installation of the windows and cavity barriers, which are critical in preventing a chimney-like effect in the event of a fire.

The leaked document reads: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection.

“The original facade of Grenfell Tower, comprising exposed concrete and, given its age, likely timber or metal frame windows, would not have provided a medium for fire spread up the external surface.

“In BRE’s opinion…there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.”

Responding to the report, John Healey MP, Labour’s shadow secretary of state for housing, said: “The terrible fire at Grenfell Tower exposed a breakdown in our system of fire-safety checks and controls. It demands a national response from government to make sure it never happens again.

“Ten months on, it is shameful that only seven other tower blocks with dangerous cladding have had it replaced. Ministers need to stop sitting on their hands, and act urgently to help fund essential fire safety work in tower blocks that they know are dangerous.”

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Green Party Councillor Sian Berry, who has been trying to get to the bottom of a similarly botched refurbishment at the Chalcots estate in Camden, meanwhile urged that parties needed to show a clear commitment to action in order to ensure that a tragedy similar to the Grenfell Tower fire never happens again.

“The residents of Grenfell were failed by many people - those who chose the materials, planned and carried out the work on their homes, but also by the council and the TMO who were responsible for overseeing the works," she said.

"All of this needs to come out in the inquiry and the people responsible must be fully held to account. Justice for Grenfell cannot just remain a campaign slogan."

In a statement, the Met Police said the force was “disappointed” that an interim draft report appeared to have been leaked and published, adding that to protect the integrity of the investigation they would not confirm specifics of the ongoing probe.

“We have made it clear from the outset that this is a wide-ranging criminal investigation that will examine all possible offences and breaches of regulations. That includes a detailed and thorough examination of how the fire started, and how and why it spread,” it read.

“The investigation focuses upon the original construction of the building, all the changes made over the decades and the most recent refurbishment.”

It explained that this included “not just the cladding system, but all the fire doors, windows, building management, and how all of those elements reacted together”, adding that the force was using a range of specialists and experts to provide the detailed analysis needed as part of the “robust” investigation.

Shape Created with Sketch. In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Show all 51 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire 1/51 Police have released images from inside the tower where at least 58 people have died Metropolitan Police 2/51 A still from a video shared by polices what appears to be a stationary bicycle sitting among the ashes 3/51 A still from a video shared by police shows the remnants of a burnt-out bathroom 4/51 Picture showing the lifts on an unknown floor Metropolitan Police 5/51 Emergency crews outside the front entrance to the tower Metropolitan Police 6/51 Fire crews inspecting flats in the burnt out tower London Metropolitan Police 7/51 Grenfell Tower is seen in the distance PA 8/51 A drone flies near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 9/51 'Theresa May Stay Away' message written on the messages of support at Latymer Community Church for those affected by the fire Ray Tang/REX 10/51 An aerial view of the area surrounding Grenfall tower Getty 11/51 Donated shoes sit in the Westway Sports Centre near to the site of the Grenfell Tower fire Getty Images 12/51 Messages of support for those affected by the massive fire in Grenfell Tower are displayed on a well near the tower in London AP 13/51 A local resident stands on her balcony by the gutted Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road Getty Images 14/51 Messages of condolence are left at a relief centre close to the scene of the fire that broke out at Grenfell Tower, EPA 15/51 A police officer stands by a security cordon outside Latimer Road station Getty Images 16/51 Firemen examine the scorched facade of the Grenfell Tower in London on a huge ladder AP 17/51 A search dog is led through the rubble of the Grenfell Tower in London as firefighting continue to damp-down the deadly fire AP 18/51 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn comforts a local resident (name not given) at St Clement's Church in west London where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower David Mirzoeff/PA 19/51 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn hugs councillor Mushtaq Lasharie as he arrives at St Clement's Church in Latimer Road, where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower Getty Images 20/51 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn meeting staff and volunteers at St Clementís Church in Latimer Road David Mirzoeff/PA 21/51 Firefighters with a dog walk around the base of the Grenfell Tower REUTERS/Peter Nicholls 22/51 Emotions run high as people attend a candle lit vigil outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 23/51 Debris hangs from the blackened exterior of Grenfell Tower Getty Images 24/51 A woman speaks to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Yui Mok/PA Wire 25/51 A woman holds a missing person posters near the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 26/51 Sadiq Khan speaking with a resident James Gourley/REX 27/51 Ken Livingstone walks near the scene of the Grenfell Tower fire Getty Images 28/51 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is confronted by Kai Ramos, 7, near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Yui Mok/PA Wire 29/51 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan speaks to a woman outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Yui Mok/PA Wire 30/51 Volunteers distribute aid near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 31/51 Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA 32/51 Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA 33/51 Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA 34/51 People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 35/51 People gather to observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower Getty Images 36/51 People light candles as they observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower Getty Images 37/51 People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 38/51 A man distributes food from the back of a van near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett 39/51 A firefighter is cheered near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett 40/51 A T-shirt with a written message from the London Fire Brigade hangs from a fence near The Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 41/51 A young girl on her way to lay flowers near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 42/51 The remains of residential tower block Grenfell Tower are seen from Dixon House a nearby tower block Getty 43/51 Volunteers prepare supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block which was destroyed in a fire REUTERS/Neil Hall 44/51 Volunteers move a car to make space for a lorry picking up supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 45/51 People distribute boxes of food near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower bloc REUTERS/Paul Hackett 46/51 A woman touches a missing poster for 12-year-old Jessica Urbano on a tribute wall after laying flowers on the side of Latymer Community Church next to the fire-gutted Grenfell Tower AP 47/51 A man looks at messages written on a wall near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett 48/51 Candles and messages of condolence near where the fire broke out at Grenfell Tower EPA 49/51 Police carry a stretcher towards Grenfell Tower Rick Findler/PA Wire 50/51 Emergency services at Grenfell Tower Rick Findler/PA Wire 51/51 Police carry out a body from Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Rick Findler/PA Wire 1/51 Police have released images from inside the tower where at least 58 people have died Metropolitan Police 2/51 A still from a video shared by polices what appears to be a stationary bicycle sitting among the ashes 3/51 A still from a video shared by police shows the remnants of a burnt-out bathroom 4/51 Picture showing the lifts on an unknown floor Metropolitan Police 5/51 Emergency crews outside the front entrance to the tower Metropolitan Police 6/51 Fire crews inspecting flats in the burnt out tower London Metropolitan Police 7/51 Grenfell Tower is seen in the distance PA 8/51 A drone flies near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 9/51 'Theresa May Stay Away' message written on the messages of support at Latymer Community Church for those affected by the fire Ray Tang/REX 10/51 An aerial view of the area surrounding Grenfall tower Getty 11/51 Donated shoes sit in the Westway Sports Centre near to the site of the Grenfell Tower fire Getty Images 12/51 Messages of support for those affected by the massive fire in Grenfell Tower are displayed on a well near the tower in London AP 13/51 A local resident stands on her balcony by the gutted Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road Getty Images 14/51 Messages of condolence are left at a relief centre close to the scene of the fire that broke out at Grenfell Tower, EPA 15/51 A police officer stands by a security cordon outside Latimer Road station Getty Images 16/51 Firemen examine the scorched facade of the Grenfell Tower in London on a huge ladder AP 17/51 A search dog is led through the rubble of the Grenfell Tower in London as firefighting continue to damp-down the deadly fire AP 18/51 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn comforts a local resident (name not given) at St Clement's Church in west London where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower David Mirzoeff/PA 19/51 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn hugs councillor Mushtaq Lasharie as he arrives at St Clement's Church in Latimer Road, where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower Getty Images 20/51 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn meeting staff and volunteers at St Clementís Church in Latimer Road David Mirzoeff/PA 21/51 Firefighters with a dog walk around the base of the Grenfell Tower REUTERS/Peter Nicholls 22/51 Emotions run high as people attend a candle lit vigil outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 23/51 Debris hangs from the blackened exterior of Grenfell Tower Getty Images 24/51 A woman speaks to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Yui Mok/PA Wire 25/51 A woman holds a missing person posters near the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 26/51 Sadiq Khan speaking with a resident James Gourley/REX 27/51 Ken Livingstone walks near the scene of the Grenfell Tower fire Getty Images 28/51 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is confronted by Kai Ramos, 7, near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Yui Mok/PA Wire 29/51 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan speaks to a woman outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Yui Mok/PA Wire 30/51 Volunteers distribute aid near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 31/51 Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA 32/51 Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA 33/51 Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower EPA 34/51 People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 35/51 People gather to observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower Getty Images 36/51 People light candles as they observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower Getty Images 37/51 People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 38/51 A man distributes food from the back of a van near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett 39/51 A firefighter is cheered near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett 40/51 A T-shirt with a written message from the London Fire Brigade hangs from a fence near The Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 41/51 A young girl on her way to lay flowers near Grenfell Tower Getty Images 42/51 The remains of residential tower block Grenfell Tower are seen from Dixon House a nearby tower block Getty 43/51 Volunteers prepare supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block which was destroyed in a fire REUTERS/Neil Hall 44/51 Volunteers move a car to make space for a lorry picking up supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth 45/51 People distribute boxes of food near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower bloc REUTERS/Paul Hackett 46/51 A woman touches a missing poster for 12-year-old Jessica Urbano on a tribute wall after laying flowers on the side of Latymer Community Church next to the fire-gutted Grenfell Tower AP 47/51 A man looks at messages written on a wall near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block REUTERS/Paul Hackett 48/51 Candles and messages of condolence near where the fire broke out at Grenfell Tower EPA 49/51 Police carry a stretcher towards Grenfell Tower Rick Findler/PA Wire 50/51 Emergency services at Grenfell Tower Rick Findler/PA Wire 51/51 Police carry out a body from Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building Rick Findler/PA Wire

It added: “Our aim is to carry out an investigation that has integrity and if it uncovers evidence that any individual or organisation is criminally culpable we want that evidence to be tested through the judicial system.”

A Kensington and Chelsea Council spokesperson said: “We think the public inquiry and the police investigation are the right places for testing all the evidence as a whole.

“The council is clear – we have handed over thousands of documents – we are committed to finding the truth. We hope full disclosure of all the evidence, tested by the inquiry judge, will deliver the answers to ensure this never happens again.”</s>Survivor groups have reacted with anger after a leaked report into the Grenfell Tower fire revealed the blaze would have had “little opportunity” to spread beyond the flat it started in, had the building not been renovated with combustible material.

The 210-page report, which has been prepared as part of the Metropolitan Police Service investigation, concludes that the fire would not have spread beyond flat 16 - where the fire originated on the fourth floor - if the original facade of the building had not been re-clad.

The interim document, leaked to the Evening Standard, was authored by fire investigation experts BRE Global.

In addition to the cladding, the installation of the windows and cavity barriers were also deficient, the report reveals.

Experts found that if the original building had been built to less stringent modern safety standards of fire resistance “it is likely the Tower would have collapsed, whether fully or partially”.

Grenfell United, the main group for survivors and bereaved families of the fire, said that the report was “shocking but it is not surprising to those of us that lived in the tower”.

It has been a little over ten months since the fire tore through the 24-storey building in west London last summer killing 71 people.

According to the Standard, the report reveals that the original concrete building was turned from a safe structure into a tinderbox by the refurbishment between 2014 and 2016.

In the immediate aftermath of the blaze residents from the estate where Grenfell Tower sat blamed the new cladding for the pace at which the fire spread.

While survivors and relatives of those who died in the blaze have expressed concerns about the tower’s refurbishment, the leaked report shows for the first time how it fell short of building regulations, the Standard reports.

The police investigation into the blaze is running concurrently to the public inquiry.

The frames were “significantly narrower than the gap between the concrete surfaces of the columns, 150mm narrower”. This meant that large gaps were left at either end, which were then filled by a rubberised membrane, rigid foam insulation and uPVC lightweight plastic panels. Yet none of these materials used were able to provide 30 minutes fire resistance. This meant that a direct route was created which allowed the fire to spread “into the cavity of the facade … and from the facade back into flats”. The BRE report states that the construction of the window “did not provide any substantial barrier to fire taking hold on the facade outside”. The report states that the insulation used was “combustible” and “provided a medium for fire spread up, across and within sections of the facade”. The manufacturer of the insulation foam was not clearly identified on the beams. These were of “insufficient size specification” to fulfil their role of expanding and sealing the gap between the concrete surface of the building and the cladding insulation. According to the report, some of the cavity barriers were installed “upside down” or “back to front”, thereby hindering their effectiveness. As a result of these failings, a chimney-like effect was created in between the cladding and the concrete surface which provided a route for fire to spread. The aluminium composite material used in the facade had a polyethylene (plastic) core that “appears to be highly combustible” and “appears to have provided a medium for fire spread up and across the facade”. Contrary to building regulations, many front doors to the flats did not have door closers. As a result, a number of doors were inadvertently left open and the fire and smoke from each flat could travel more easily into communal areas. Facilities available to firefighters were “deficient” and they were hindered by poor access to the tower. Three sides of the tower were not accessible due to landscaping and on the east side of the tower there was only room for a single fire engine. A wet rising main had also not been installed, hindering the pressure and flow of water for firefighters. Critcisms were also made at the lack of a sprinkler system and the narrow width of the single stairwell.</s>There would have been "little opportunity" for a fire at Grenfell Tower to spread with such devastating consequences as it did if the outside of the building had not been renovated with "combustible" material, according to a report seen by the Evening Standard .

The draft report from January this year - said to have been prepared by fire investigation experts BRE Global as part of the police investigation into the tragic blaze last June - also said the fire damage was so severe that if the building had been constructed to less stringent current safety regulations "it is likely the tower would have collapsed, whether fully or partially".

According to the Evening Standard , the leaked report said: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection."

And the report added: “In BRE’s opinion… there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.”

However, it found alleged “deficiencies” in the construction of a new facade during refurbishment of the tower block from 2014 to 2016 , which were said to have helped the flames spread up and down the building's exterior.

The Evening Standard's report refers to the investigation saying the fire would not have spread from a fridge freezer in a fourth floor kitchen had the building not been re-clad.

It also identified flaws with wall cavity barriers, window frames, 'door closers' and flammable insulation and cladding, the paper said.

A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said the force was "disappointed that an interim draft report appears to have been leaked", adding it would not "confirm specifics of the ongoing investigation".

She said the police investigation into the fire was looking at the original construction of the building and any changes such as the recent refurbishment - "that includes not just the cladding system, but all the fire doors, windows, building management, and how all of those elements reacted together."

The police spokeswoman added: “Our aim is to carry out an investigation that has integrity and if it uncovers evidence that any individual or organisation is criminally culpable, we want that evidence to be tested through the judicial system.

"The heart of our investigation is and will continue to be the families of those who lost their lives, those for whom Grenfell Tower was home and the local community so impacted by events that night."

A spokesman for Kensington and Chelsea Council commented: “We think the public inquiry and the police investigation are the right places for testing all the evidence as a whole.

"We hope full disclosure of all the evidence, tested by the inquiry judge, will deliver the answers to ensure this never happens again."

Grenfell United, the main group supporting survivors and bereaved families of the fire , described the apparent findings of the report as "shocking".

BRE Global said it would not be commenting.

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Available to download from the App Store or Google Play for Android .</s>A report into the causes of last year’s Grenfell Tower fire by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) has alleged substantial and significant shortcomings in the building’s 2016 refurbishment.

Not only was the cladding chosen badly, the design and installation of windows and cavity barriers was also flawed, turning what had originally been a safe structure into a tinderbox.

The 210-page report produced by BRE Global for the Metropolitan Police’s criminal investigation into the fire has been seen by London’s Evening Standard newspaper, which carries a full report on the findings.

In summary, it says that windows, cavity barriers and the cladding system all failed to meet building regulations.

The fire started in a fridge-freezer in a flat on the fourth floor on 14th June 2017. Flames escaped through an open window, took hold in the cladding. All 24 storeys were rapidly consumed, killing 71 residents.

The first conclusion of the report is that had the building not been re-clad, the fire would not have gone beyond the first flat.

Grenfell Tower was built in 1974 and underwent an £8.6m refurbishment. This was completed only in May 2016. The refurbishment included recladding the building in panels of Arconic's Reynolux coated aluminium sheets with a Reynobond polyethylene (PE) core. Celotex supplied RS5000 insulation.

The refurbishment was carried out by Rydon Maintenance for Kensington & Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation and approved by Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea building control.

According to the Evening Standard, the BRE report says: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection.

“The original facade of Grenfell Tower, comprising exposed concrete and, given its age, likely timber or metal frame windows, would not have provided a medium for fire spread up the external surface. In BRE’s opinion … there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.”

The BRE identified five significant breaches of building regulations that appear directly implicated in the loss of life:

1. The cavity barriers, which in the event of fire are meant to expand and seal the gap between the concrete surface of the building and the cladding insulation, were of “insufficient size specification” to be effective. Some cavity barriers were installed upside down or back to front, further retarding their effectiveness. The chosen cavity barriers were designed to close a gap of 25mm but the actual gap was up to 50mm. This failure provided a route for fire to spread.

2. The window frames were 150mm narrower than the gap between the concrete surfaces of the columns. Spaces were filled by a rubberised membrane, rigid foam insulation and uPVC lightweight plastic panels incapable of providing 30 minutes fire resistance, providing fuel for, rather than a barrier to, the fire.

3. The insulation used was combustible and provided a medium for fire spread up, across and within sections of the facade.

4. The aluminium composite material used in the facade had a highly combustible polyethylene core.

5. Many flats had no door closers on their front doors so as residents fled, doors remained opened, further encouraging fire to spread.
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• Buy & Sell Construction Plant Machinery online with TCiTrader.co.uk. Find new, used & reconditioned Construction Equipment. Click here to view Construction Equipment Classifieds.</s>A damning report into the Grenfell Tower fire has revealed that 'nobody wold have died had the building not been re-clad'.

A 210-page report into the fatal inferno in west London states the fire would have had "little opportunity" to spread from the flat it started in if the exterior of the tower had not been renovated with combustible material.

According to the report, seen by the Evening Standard , the 2014-2016 refurbishment of the tower block failed to meet fire safety standards and "deficiencies" in the new facade helped the fire to spread up the building's exterior.

The report, by fire investigation experts BRE Global, was prepared as part of the police investigation into the June 14 fire at the 24-storey block.

It also identified flaws with the cavity barriers, window frames, "door closers" and flammable insulation and cladding, the paper said.

The horrifying fire at Grenfell Tower in June last year killed 71 people.

The report goes into detail on how the concrete building was turned into a tinderbox due to the refurbishment.

According to the Evening Standard the first conclusion of the report is that the fire would not have spread beyond Flat 16 — the flat of origin — and would not have claimed even a single life if the original facade of the building had not been re-clad.

The Standard say the report, which is dated January 31 2018, says: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection.

“The original facade of Grenfell Tower, comprising exposed concrete and, given its age, likely timber or metal frame windows, would not have provided a medium for fire spread up the external surface.

"In BRE’s opinion … there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.”

Colourful panels designed to improve insulation and soften the look of the brutalist concrete block were fitted to the tower in Kensington as part of a £9million refurb which was completed in May 2017.

BRE was asked to achieve three aims:
• “To establish the circumstances surrounding as many deaths resulting from the fire as possible;”
• “To establish any failings of duty of care owed to victims of the fire, both fatalities and surviving residents;”
• “To provide expert witness support in relation to any criminal prosecution, public inquiry or inquest.”

More than 200 tower blocks were found to have similar cladding to Grenfell in the months after the fire.</s>London: An incompetent refurbishment of Grenfell Tower turned the previously safe building into a tinderbox, according to an expert report commissioned by London police and leaked to London’s Evening Standard .

A total of 71 people died in the inferno of June 14 last year, when the apartment building in London’s west went up like a torch in the early hours of the morning.

The fire began in a malfunctioning fridge-freezer near a kitchen window in a fourth floor flat and quickly spread to envelop almost the entire tower, with fire crews helpless to stop the blaze or reach many trapped residents.

The draft report by fire investigation experts BRE Global found that new cladding and insulation made the outside of the building highly combustible, and exposed other areas of incompetence in the design, installation and maintenance of windows, doors and other features.

It revealed that the building came perilously close to collapse - and would have done if the original building had not been constructed well beyond modern standards of fire resistance.</s>Botched renovations have been blamed for fuelling the Grenfell Tower fire, with a leaked report revealing there would have been “little opportunity” for flames to spread if the structure had not been renovated with combustible material.

According to the Metropolitan police report, the 2014-16 refurbishment of the building failed to meet fire safety standards and “deficiencies” in the new facade helped the fire to spread up the building’s exterior.

The fire, which started in a fridge-freezer in a fourth floor flat, travelled through a nearby open window before spreading via the external cladding.

The fire damage was so severe that had the tower been built to the less stringent requirements of existing building regulations “it is likely the tower would have collapsed”, the report allegedly said.

A total of 71 people died in the west London tower block fire on 14 June last year.

The report, by fire investigation experts BRE Global, was quoted as saying: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection.

“The original facade of Grenfell Tower, comprising exposed concrete and, given its age, likely timber or metal frame windows, would not have provided a medium for fire spread up the external surface.

“In BRE’s opinion … there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.”

The report dated 31 January was prepared as part of the police investigation into the fatal blaze. The document also identified flaws with the cavity barriers, window frames, “door closers” and flammable insulation and cladding.

Cavity barriers were installed back to front or upside down and were “insufficient” to bridge the gap between the surface of the building and the cladding, creating a chimney-like effect that aided the spread of flames.

Window frames were narrower than the gap they were placed in, meaning fire could spread around the frame, onto the building’s facade and back into other flats.

There was also a lack of “door closers”, meaning that when residents fled their flat doors stayed open, allowing the fire to spread into the lobby.

The absence of a sprinkler system and the narrow single internal stairwell also breached building regulations.

The report noted the waste chute rooms, located on every floor, were “largely undamaged” as fire doors protected them from the blaze.</s>The 210-page interim document undertaken on behalf of fire investigation experts BRE Global, dated January 31, has allegedly uncovered five major failures caused by below-standard building work at the 24-story tower block in London. The inferno broke out on June 14 when flames from an exploding fridge engulfed the building within minutes, with the fire fanned due to ‘gaps’ in the building’s newly installed cladding and windows. The fire would not have spread beyond its source and that nobody would have died if the buildings outside had not been re-clad, according to the report leaked to the Evening Standard. The report said: “Grenfell Tower, as originally built, appears to have been designed on the premise of providing very high levels of passive fire protection. “The original facade of Grenfell Tower, comprising exposed concrete and, given its age, likely timber or metal frame windows, would not have provided a medium for fire spread up the external surface. “In BRE's opinion ... there would have been little opportunity for a fire in a flat of Grenfell Tower to spread to any neighbouring flats.'
• The fire escalated further because the insulation used in the refurbishment, which was carried out between 2014 and 2016, was actually flammable
• Only a fifth of the building’s fire doors worked properly, thus accelerating the speed at which smoke and flames spread through the core
• Firefighting facilities were below standard, with no ‘wet rising main’ pipe that meant fire fighting water could not be easily fired on all 24 floors
• New landscaping at the base of the building also meant that just one fire engine could park there, with the only real benefit of the refurbishment being that it did stop the tower collapsing
• The refurbishment, which was completed a year earlier, had failed to meet fire safety standards and ‘deficiencies’ in the new facade helped the fire spread up the building’s exterior
• Cavity barriers were actually found to have been installed back to front or upside down and were “insufficient” to bridge the gap between the surface of the building and the cladding, helping to spread the flames
• Window frames were also narrower than the gap they were placed in, meaning the fire could spread around the frame, onto the tower’s facade and back into other flats
• When residents attempted to flee the fire, many of their flat doors stayed open, enabling the fire to spread into the lobby, while the absence of a sprinkler system and the narrow single internal stairwell also breached building regulations Grenfell United, a group for survivors and bereaved families, said in a statement: “The report is shocking but it is not surprising to those of us that lived in the tower. It was clear to us the refurbishment was shoddy and second rate. “We raised concerns time and time again - we were not just ignored but bullied to keep quiet.' “It's an industry that is broken. It's also an industry that has been allowed to get away with this behaviour.
A leaked draft report by fire investigators BRS Global for the Metropolitan Police reveals new details of mistakes in the construction and refurbishment of Grenfell Tower in London. As well as flammable cladding the report finds errors in window and cavity installation. It concludes the fire would have not spread beyond a single flat and all 71 victims would have survived had refurbishment not been performed, and that victims may also have survived had they sought refuge behind fire doors protecting waste chute rooms on each floor.