Police Confirm Grenfell Tower Fire Caused By Faulty Fridge

London Metropolitan Police have confirmed that the Grenfell Tower fire was started by a faulty fridge and that the building's cladding, insulation and tiles all failed safety tests.

Seventy-nine people are believed to have died in the tragedy as a blaze ripped through the West London building on June 14.

Metropolitan Detective Superintendent Fiona McCormack said the Hotpoint FF175BP model fridge had not been subject to any recall.

Credit: PA

The detective superintendent added: "All I can say at the moment is they (tiles and insulation) don't pass any safety tests.

"What we are being told at the moment by the Building Research Establishment is that the cladding and insulation failed all safety tests.

"Our investigation is to establish how the fire started."

The superintendent also revealed that, on the night of the fire, there were more than 600 calls made to the emergency services.

"Some of these calls are over an hour long and truly harrowing," said the detective superintendent.

The police have started to take statements from the residents of the flats as the investigations are ongoing.

Yesterday, cladding was removed from several high-rise buildings across the UK amid mounting fears about the quality of such material.

In parliament on Tuesday, Prime Minister Theresa May apologised for the lack of urgency in the government response, both locally and nationally.

PM May said: "The support on the ground, in the initial hours, was not good enough.

"That was a failure of the state, local and national, to help people when they needed it most.

"As Prime Minister, I apologise for that failure. As Prime Minister, I have taken responsibility for doing what we can to put things right."

Credit: PA

Credit: PA

Hundreds of people lost their homes in the fire, and have since been moved into properties elsewhere across the capital.

Celebrities, including Liam Payne, Leona Lewis, Rita Ora and Craig David, recently released a single for the 'Artists For Grenfell' charity in an effort to raise more money for the victims.

So far, the single, plus the justgiving page, are expected to have raised around £500,000 for those affected by the fire.

Sources: BBC News, Metro

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Grenfell Tower, Fire, UK, London

Michael Minay

Mike Minay is a trending journalist at LADbible. He’s co-ordinated interviews with some of the big names from the world of news and sport including ITV’s Robert Peston, Sky Sports’ Jeff Stelling and darts champion Michael van Gerwen. His reporting days began on University radio in Birmingham, before moving to BBC Sport Online – creating content for large events such as Wimbledon and the FA Cup final. Mike still commentates on Football League matches at the weekend. A Manchester LAD at heart.

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