Families enraged by plans for fatal London fire site

Local residents have accused the British government of "disgraceful and unforgivable" behavior over plans to take down the remains of a west London tower block where 72 people died in a fire in 2017.

The nighttime blaze at Grenfell Tower on June 14 was caused by an electrical fault in an apartment on the fourth of the building's 24 floors.

In September 2024, the final report of a six-year inquiry into the fire was published. It picked out "decades of failure" by central government and fire safety issues being "ignored, delayed or disregarded" as contributory factors, and was also heavily critical of architects and building materials companies.

Cladding on the building exterior was identified as having caused the fire to spread quickly, despite there having been concerns about flammability going back years. A separate police investigation is still ongoing.

Last week, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said engineers had advised that the remains of the structure were "significantly damaged", so it had been decided to "sensitively take down the tower through a process of careful and sensitive progressive deconstruction that happens behind the wrapping".

Housing Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner informed bereaved families and survivors of the decision before it was announced to the public, but one representative group, Grenfell United, said it appeared "no one supported" it. "Ignoring the voices of bereaved on the future of our loved ones' grave site is disgraceful and unforgivable," it said in a statement.

Representatives of another community group, Grenfell Next of Kin, thought differently, saying that while it was "obviously a very sensitive and difficult" decision, affected families "understand the hard facts around safety".

Speaking to the BBC, Rayner defended the decision and rejected suggestions she had been "aggressive" when meeting local residents.

"I felt, weighing up all of the different conversations that I had, and the engineering report, that actually the only way forward really was to sensitively make sure that we start taking the tower to ground level, but that we have a lasting memorial on that site," she said, adding that she would work with families to construct a memorial to "do justice to what is a sacred place".

A recent update from the ministry said it was "clear that there is not a consensus about what should happen to (the site)."

For some people, it said, the continued sight of the block "helps to ensure the tragedy is never forgotten and can act as a reminder of the need for justice and accountability", but for others, it was "a painful reminder of what happened, and is having a daily impact on some members of the community".

Despite the wishes of some people that some floors be retained as a memorial, it continued, for others this would be too painful, and engineers had also said that structurally, it was not practical. No work will take place before the anniversary of the fire this year, and it is hoped planning permission for a memorial could be submitted next year.