16/06/2017 BBC News at Six

The Grenfell Tower fire - the BBC understands the total

of people dead or missing now is around 70, and anger about why it

Hundreds of protesters demanding justice for the victims storm

We are in the richest borough in the UK.

And in this very borough we have a building where some

And the safety measures are totally inadequate.

The Queen and Prince William visit one of the relief centres to talk

Police say they believe the fire was not started deliberately

and they are working as fast as they can to recover bodies.

What we are all doing is, as quickly and with as much dignity as we can,

recovering those that are still inside.

And sadly, we do not expect there to be any survivors.

Theresa May visits a hospital and announces ?5 million in aid

More details are emerging about some of the victims who died in the fire.

New images of the moments after the fire broke out and tore up

In Sportsday: Cristiano Ronaldo, the World Player of the Year, could

Good afternoon and welcome to the BBC News at Six.

Police say that at least 30 people are now confirmed to have died

in the fire that engulfed Grenfell Tower behind me in west London.

The BBC understands that the total number of people who are dead

There is growing anger at the way the authorities have dealt

Around 500 protestors have stormed Kensington Town Hall.

In the last half hour, the Prime Minister has offered

a ?5 million relief fund for those affected by the fire.

The Queen and Prince William have been visiting a relief centre

which has been helping victims of the fire.

Our first report tonight on the latest on the tower block

fire, is from our correspondent Jeremy Cooke.

A crowd storms Kensington town Hall, demanding action. Demanding justice.

We want justice, we want justice. And demanding answers. How could

this tragedy have happened, on this scale, in this city, in 2017? We

need to be heard. We need to be heard. We have things to say. We are

in pain. The whole procedure is chaos. We are sent from hospital to

hospital. Why is there not community hope for family members? Why do we

have two actively look for them and be given misinformation, be told

they are possibly alive, making us call family members? We live in the

modern world. Why is it carried out like this? It doesn't make sense.

Today, again, in the shadow of Grenfell Tower, a different kind of

response. It is an overwhelming community tragedy with an

overwhelming community response. We get all the missing people on the

same window. A continuing grassroots mobilisation, doing all that they

can. And visited today by royalty. A time to reflect and to thank. You

guys do a brilliant job. But the Queen and Prince William left in no

doubt of the agony and the grief here. Royal protocol meets raw

emotion. William, come here. Where are the children? The Queen turning

up, everyone came. Go to the media, show the Queen you are nice, show

the smiles. But you are not doing the right job. Could you tell us who

they are? Not my daughters. Families, friends. Not my children,

my family's friends. Not necessarily my children. Rescue crews are still

making their way through the building. It is hard to imagine a

more challenging task. Dangerous and slow work. It is why the official

death toll remains so much lower than what the people here expect,

and what they fear. The building itself is in a very hazardous state.

It is kind to take a period of time for our specialists, both from the

police and the London Fire Brigade, to fully searched the building, to

make sure we locate and recover everybody that has sadly perished in

that fire. We will be doing that as swiftly as we can, absolutely. I

completely understand the need for those that have lost loved ones that

as quick as we can we are able to confirm that. With all of that comes

frustration and the sense among many that more help is needed at the

official level. There is a woman on the train who goes past and she sees

body bags. Loads of them. Why are they lying? Even if you can't

identify them, don't lie. Say, we have this many bodies unidentified.

Because there are people out here looking for their family and

friends. We have not met anyone from the council who has come here and

spoken to anyone. The MP came here on Wednesday for about five minutes

but we haven't seen anyone who has even come in and speak to any of the

local people who have been affected, which is really annoying. You need

summing gauge meant. Yes. We haven't got any of that. All we have is

people coming to volunteer, to do this and that, drop things off, but

we haven't seen anyone in authority who we can give some responsibility

to. They are not bringing out the truth, man. They need to talk the

truth and get real. Theresa May comes down and doesn't see none of

us. When it was Manchester, she was all about the place. No truth. They

have always been wanting to do something like this to Ladbroke

Grove. And now something is done, it would be nice if something was done

properly to help us. The investigations, inquest and

enquiries will take perhaps years to complete but the people here believe

they already have a fundamental understanding of this tragedy, that

the fire swept through the building at breathtaking pace, and that so

many people from this neighbourhood have lost their lives. Away from the

crowds, it is now three days on. The fire is out and London rumbles on.

Grenfell Tower, 127 homes, stands Monument now to the lives, to the

families who have been lost. Jeremy Cooke, BBC News, North Kensington.

Our correspondent Dan Johnson is at Kensington Town Hall

We saw some very angry people. What can you tell us? There is no

mistaking the level of frustration here. There was a plea at the start

of the protest for things to be calm and orderly, and in the main, they

have been. This has certainly been non-violent protest. But there was a

point when things boiled over and some people rushed towards the door

of the Council officers and some managed to get inside and take their

message directly to council officials. Police have had to come

and block the door and pushed people back. But still, people are

gathering, sharing their message. They feel let down by their counsel,

that there has not been enough information and action. They say the

money that has been made available simply isn't enough, isn't getting

through to the right people who need it. They say there are people who

are homeless, with nowhere to sleep, no clothes to wear. They want

temporary accommodation made available immediately for all

survivors of the fire, and reassurance that everyone who has

been made homeless will be re-homed quickly and within the borough. But

I think it is obvious that the horror of this disaster has shone a

spotlight on some broader issues around inequality and

dissatisfaction with the way things are run here. People feel that their

counsel is not accountable and has not been working to serve them. They

are determined to get that message through, and some people are intent

on using this disaster as an opportunity to reorder the way of

life here. Thank you very much. Politicians from all parties,

the Prime Minister in particular, are facing a barrage of criticism

from local people over how they've responded to the events

in North Kensington. Many feel their voices have

been ignored for years. Today the Local Government

Secretary, Sajid Javid, promised that whatever

recommendations were made by safety experts, including rehousing people

living in other tower blocks, Our deputy political editor

John Pienaar reports on the political questions thrown up

by the disaster. Today, protesters demanded help,

answers, and justice. Clothing for those who have lost

everything poured in. All of it piling pressure

on the government to learn the lessons of Grenfell Tower

and stop it happening again. Theresa May was back,

this time, unlike last time, While ministers promised to do

everything, anything they could to identify buildings

at risk and make them We will take the expert advice,

do whatever it takes to make those building safe,

or make those people say. But there can be no

short cuts to this. But making this kind of loss, this

kind of horror the last we will see, means thousands of blocks must be

inspected, millions of pounds of work and who knows how

many moved to safety. Here, they are busy helping

now, demanding action So, within the space of a few hours,

Theresa May and two Cabinet ministers have been in the area,

just a day after the Prime Minister was criticised for failing to meet

and hear directly from people caught Whether or not they are trying

to make up for lost time, to demonstrate their concern,

they are under pressure. People here want answers

and they want action. Or is it just their job to do

something about it now? I think there's more

than politicians to be blamed. They are all involved,

they are all to blame. They are probably

blaming each other. There is no single politician

or civilian who came forward They should try and stop people from

coming into London and, you know, profiteering from building huge

complexes, million pound properties and ghettoising the people who don't

have that sort of money into properties that are not

maintained and not looked after. The London mayor is

adding to the demands. It's really important we are not

left waiting for two, three, I'm asking for an interim response

to the enquiry this summer. Because of people saving

money, people are dying. That is why it will be

so important to get It's going to take far too

long for people here. We're on the verge of some serious

anger in the streets. More fury outside a church being

visited by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister are struggling to

keep pace with the crisis. Police said today there was nothing

to suggest that the fire, which broke out in the early hours

of Wednesday morning, Investigators are still trying

to piece together what happened and how the blaze spread so quickly

throughout the building. There are now three inquiries,

by the police, by the Fire Brigade, Our home affairs correspondent

Tom Symonds now on the questions My mate told me 20 minutes ago that

Grenfell Tower is on fire. It is the first, obvious question, for the

Fire Brigade to answer. This video was shot 20 minutes after the fire

started. Where? How? I saw someone come running out of flat 16 on the

phone, calling for the Fire Brigade. He said it was a fridge fire. His

fridge was by his kitchen window, so when the Fire Brigade put the fire

out, the fire had already gone through the window to the cladding

on the outside, and the wind has helped it. All of a sudden, the

cladding court. He said the cladding court, which leads to question

number two. It should not have. The building was clad with aluminium

panels in 2016, the work signed off by the council. So far there is no

evidence that standards were breached, but... The regulations are

a minimum safety standard expected for a building, to keep it

reasonably safe for the occupants and people around it. If you are

using materials, or using it in circumstances that you know are more

dangerous, then you have to mitigate that, make a risk assessment and

engineer out the risk. In this test, the fire is contained by flameproof

walls. Experts say that good fire safety results from good design. So

was the redesigned to Grenfell Tower safe? Were there other factors?

After the work was completed, gas pipes were moved to public areas.

Residents were furious. The job of finding out who might be to blame

has now been taken over by the police. What we will do with the

investigation is we will get to the answer of what has happened and why.

That is why the police have taken the lead for the investigation, and

if criminal offences have been committed, we will investigate that.

Examining the wreckage will just be the start. They will have to look at

the role of the council, building managers, contractors,

subcontractors, a vast job. The question of whether tower blocks are

safe will be for the public enquiry, but for now, across the country,

this is Luiten, councils are checking fire safety procedures and

refurbishment work. Deaths in fires are rare. Just 229 people were

killed at home last year. Another question for the public enquiry,

because there have been plenty of warnings in the past. Cladding was a

factor in this fire in Southwark in 2009. A coroner suggested more

sprinkler systems might be considered, but introducing them

widely might mean a new approach to fire safety. Something for the

enquiry to consider. The 1970s hero Grenfell Tower was designed simply

to contain the spread of flames, what is called passive fire safety.

But all of these modern developments will have fire detection systems and

sprinklers, bringing those older blocks up to this sort of standard

would not be cheap, and it would certainly be disruptive for their

residents. But what price should be put on a life? Especially on the

lives of those living in towers, from the poorest in society? This

disaster has triggered a national debate which could last years.

Well, as we've been hearing dozens of people are still missing.

Many families are searching for information, trying to find out

More heartbreaking stories are emerging of last phone calls

and messages from people who were trapped in their homes.

Sarah Campbell reports now on the victims,

With each day, the number of people dead or feared

The scale of the loss of life is almost impossible to comprehend.

Confirmed today, Khadija Saye, who was 24 years old.

The MP David Lammy, a friend, tweeted: "I mourn the tragic loss

Former colleagues feared the worst, after reading her final tweets

about thick smoke in the 20th floor flat she shared with her mother.

She had a beautiful soul, she was a kind person,

she was always volunteering, always looking out for other people,

She was very passionate about her own community and a hugely

Her photography and her art speak for themselves.

She really had a massive future ahead of her,

and she'll be hugely missed by all of us.

Two other victims have been named so far. Five-year-old.

And Mohammad Alhajali, a 23-year-old Syrian refugee.

Once I asked him, why are you studying civil engineering?

He laughed and said, because I want to go back to Syria

when the war is over, and help rebuild the country.

This wall has become a focal point for the community,

a place for people to leave tributes, to write down messages,

and express their thoughts and feelings about what happened.

It's also a place where, even today, family members and friends have

posted pictures of those they desperately want to hear from.

Well, I'm hoping, basically, they are in the hospital.

Even if it means they are unconscious,

but they are in hospital, that's what I'm hoping.

I feel angry, I feel sad, I feel everything.

I miss my friend, my friend is inside, but I can't do anything.

I saw her the same day before she died.

The wait for news goes on for family after family.

Mo Khalil spent much of his day putting up pictures

of his uncle Hesham Rahman, who lived on the 20th floor.

Kind of, empty feeling that we've all got.

We don't really know anything, we've got no answers.

We are all just looking at each other, hoping that we find them.

It will take time, but there will be many more names to add

The agony of the families and friends still waiting to hear.

We'll have more from here in Kensington a little

later in the programme, but for now, it's back

A brief look at some of the day's other news stories.

A man has been arrested outside the Houses of Parliament

Officers used a Taser when they detained him.

There were no injuries in the incident, which happened

by the main Carriage Gates entrance, close to where Constable Keith

Palmer was stabbed and killed during the terror attack in March.

The two soldiers who died in an incident involving a tank

at an army firing range in Pembrokeshire have been named.

Corporals Matthew Hatfield and Darren Neilson served

Two others were injured at the Castlemartin Range on Wednesday.

Live tank firing exercises have been suspended

Helmut Kohl, the German Chancellor who oversaw the reunification

Angela Merkel described him as a great German and a great European.

British Airways cabin crew are to stage a two-week strike

in a long-running dispute over pay and travel concession.

Members of the unite union will walk out between Saturday July 1st

and Sunday July 16th during the peak holiday season.

BA said the proposed action was "extreme

Tennis world number one Andy Murray admits that at 30 years old,

he may only have two more years left at the top and wants

Next month he will try to emulate Fred Perry and win

He spoke exclusively to our sports editor Dan Roan.

He is world number one and Wimbledon champion,

no wonder Sir Andy Murray is now seen as a true sporting superhero.

I'm certainly not that strong, unfortunately!

The tennis star telling me how he feels about being portrayed

in comic book form as part of a new billboard campaign.

I don't know about that, I'm not sure my wife would let me

have something like that up in the house!

Murray is preparing to defend his Wimbledon title,

but having turned 30 this year, he is determined to

Maybe these next couple of years are the last few

where I have a chance to compete for the majors, and the biggest

tournaments, so I do want to make the most of them.

I wish I'd enjoyed my career more when I was younger.

I certainly wasn't prepared for the attention that came

with becoming a professional athlete or a top tennis player.

And if you do the business, to win it for a third time you'd

How remarkable an achievement would that be?

It would be amazing, I never expected to win it

So I'll prepare as best I can and if I play well,

then I definitely have a chance of winning.

After recent events, Wimbledon's preparing

for the biggest security crackdown in its history.

So how does Murray feel about the safety of sports events?

Walking around the grounds and those huge amounts of people,

but we do also see the security that goes into the events.

It's been fine throughout my career, but it is something

Having recently recovered, Murray starts his grass court season

here at Queen's Club next week, where he's enjoyed much success.

But it's Wimbledon where Britain's top sports star will be

Good evening. This is one of our Weather Watcher pictures from

Cornwall. Blue sky, a lot more of that over the coming few days. This

weekend is going to be warmer. It will be quite humid as well and some

very strong sunshine out there. Very hot air across Liberia, not quite

that hot on our shores but we are expecting to see temperatures get

into the low 30s. It will be quite warm elsewhere. Further north thick

cloud which brought some rain with it. That's moving north with further

outbreaks of rain. Elsewhere it with clear spells. The odd patch of low

cloud here and there but the main thing about the night is it will be

a very warm one. Many places no lower than 1617, so a difficult

night for sleeping sleeping. A warm start and a hot day. Temperatures

rising quite quickly although there is a weather front lingering in the

far north-west bringing cloud and rain. Most places will be sunny and

very warm. The middle 20s quite easily. Maybe even reaching 30 in

the south-eastern corner. Pollen levels are also very high in the

southern half of the UK. High levels into Northern Ireland as well. Hay

fever sufferers, bear that in mind. Through the evening it's fine across

most of the UK. It's going to be a warm night to take us into Sunday. A

very similar day but that weather front lingering. Outbreaks of rain

but not so elsewhere. Plenty of sunshine and quite a hot one, 30

degrees in the south-east. Theresa May has offered a ?5 million

relief fund for those affected by the fire. She visited the area and a

while ago spoke to the BBC and said the government was doing everything

it could to help those affected by the tragedy. We are committed to

ensuring that people rehoused as far as possible within the borough or in

neighbouring boroughs. Some people may want to go to another part of

London where perhaps they have a greater support network, where they

have friends and relatives. We are ensuring that in three weeks people

will be rehoused, so they have a home to go to. Do you accept that

you miss read the public mood, the level of anger? You didn't go and

meet residents and they really resented that. This was a terrible

tragedy that took place. People have lost their lives and others have

lost everything, all their possessions, their home and

everything. What we are doing is putting in place the support that

will help them. It is a terrible tragedy. I've heard horrifying

stories from the Fire Brigade, the police and from the victims

themselves who were in that tower, but also from other local residents,

some of whom haven't been able to go back to their homes either. What I'm

now absolutely focused on is ensuring we get that support on the

ground. Government is making money available, we are ensuring we'll get

to the bottom of what's happened, we'll ensure people are rehoused,

but we need to make sure that actually happens. Let's speak to our

Deputy political editor. Theresa May has come in for considerable

criticism about her response to the fire. 72 hours after it started, she

came down today to meet residents and has announced a relief fund. Is

it enough to fend off her critics? Well, the Prime Minister is having

to show some of the empathy and agility some of her critics believe

what's lacking when she made her first visit to the area. I was in

the area today and I saw the truly inspiring sight of people from all

communities coming together, offering plaything donations, too

much for the volunteers on the ground to deal with. Everyone I

spoke to had talked about the lack of leadership at local and national

level. Theresa May made the announcements today, the ones he

referred to there. She'll need to see the coming public enquiry is

that quickly and makes effective recommendations and that they are

acted on quickly. The roots of this go back through the time of the last

Labour administration. But inevitably the buck stops the

tick-macro stops on the desk of the serving Prime Minister. This is a

defining test of her authority. That test has come far more quickly than

Theresa May could have imagined. Thank you.

24 people remain in hospital, 12 of them are critically ill.

For hospital staff, it was an incredibly busy time

treating the victims of burns and smoke inhalation.

Our health editor Hugh Pym has been talking to two members of NHS

staff who treated victims through Wednesday night.

King's College Hospital, one of London's major trauma centres, its

staff on the front line of the NHS response to the traumatic and

horrific aftermath of the Westminster and London Bridge

attacks, and this week Grenfell Tower. Doctor Tom Best arrived in

the early hours of Wednesday. The urgent task was to clear the airways

of victims of smoke inhalation and then the particles in their lungs.

We found and lots of soot lining the lungs. Some of that was quite hot

when it got into the lungs, and so there were some burns underneath. We

washed out as much of that soot as we possibly could to remove it. The

emotion at the end of a punishing week is raw. It's... Sorry. On a

professional level, I feel immensely proud, but there is something so

enormous about what's happened is that it's impossible to comprehend.

For most staff, there was a need to care for families in distress as

well as the patients themselves. How did you feel at the end of your

shift? It's really tough. I think when you're working, you just

powered through a bit and it's only when you step back and you finish at

the end of the day that you realise how upsetting it can be, sorry,

dealing with some of these things. It was really tough. The NHS in

London has had to cope with two major incidents in the space of less

than a fortnight, and just to illustrate the ongoing challenge,

they are still treating patients here from the London Bridge attack

as well as those who came in during the early hours of Wednesday

morning. Many staff have been involved in the emergency response

both times. That's all from us

on the BBC News at Six. In a moment we'll join the BBC's

news teams where you are, but first, as we all continue to try to take

in the immensity and horror of what has happened here,

we'll leave you with some of the messages written on a wall

near Grenfell Tower, messages of support for the survivors,

the families affected, and tributes to those

who never made it out. Babies that died, the families, the

grandfathers, the grandmothers. Everybody wants answers because

everybody is feeling upset and angry.

I will keep going on anger and adrenaline for as long as I can

because, frankly, I'd rather not to sit down and actually contemplate

the scale of what's happened around here.