23/06/2017 London News

Could longer ladders have saved lives at Grenfell Tower?

The Fire Brigades Union tells BBC London they could have

That would have made such a difference to our firefighters and

our ability to rescue people. Of course, it's impossible to speculate

what difference it could have made, but to have that there are, it would

have been a game changer. And tonight we can exclusively

reveal that the service is now looking at purchasing ladders

just like these. Barnet, Islington and Hounslow

become the latest local authorities to announce they're removing

cladding from Tower blocks. Advice for anyone living

in a Tower block - we ask the London Fire Service

what you need to know And, the latest crackdown

on motorbike thefts. But with 15,000 stolen last

year - is it enough? Good evening and welcome

to the programme. Tonight, could lives have been

saved at Grenfell Tower if the Fire Service had had access

to specialist ladders? The Fire Brigades Union believes

ladders that could have reached the very top of the Kensington tower

block may have made all the difference -

describing them as "a game-changer." Tonight BBC London can exclusively

reveal that the service is now looking to buy vehicles designed

especially to access Gareth Furby investigates what

difference they could have made. They can reach more than 100

metres into the sky. Far above, the 67 metre

height of Grenfell Tower. So are these the

firefighting platforms If they'd been available to London's

firefighters last week. To have that there, it

would have been a game That would have made such

a difference to our firefighters and Throughout its history,

London's Fire Brigade has prided itself on being one of the best

in the world. This is one of their latest

firefighting appliances, the tallest But when they were

trying to fight the Grenfell Tower, the Capital's

firefighter groups did not have London's aerial platforms can

only reach 32 metres. BBC London has discovered

this was flagged up four years ago, after a fire at another

block of flats in Camberwell. We wanted to see recommendation

for platforms and ladders that could save people in high-rise

tower blocks. A specific manufacturer of high

platforms was even named in a fire safety experts report

by lawyers at that inquest. The largest and most

established builder and But no recommendation

was made and none of So, could it have made a difference

at Grenfell Tower they had been? BBC London invited

the managing director of that company to visit

the remains of the tower, and his conclusion

was With an aerial platform, it could

have been reached. Would it have reached the top floor? Yes, of

course. What could have been done from that platform? It could have

saved lives, reach the windows, got people on board. This is one of

those machines. The company is based in Finland, they been selling them

for more than 20 years. How many of these have been sold a Fire Services

across the world? 150. But not London? Not at the moment, no. They

are not cheap. More than ?1 million 390 metre platform, but by going up

in one, you can see with the many pleas for. This platform is about

the same height as London's tallest. We are pointing at it now. And then

to a 64 metre water pump and then to the 90 metre platform. One cycle is

ten minutes. So you could go up and down in ten minutes. Yes. And had

people could indeed rescue every ten minutes? For people. Of course we

don't know how much she's such a platform would have been at Grenfell

Tower, given the intensity of the fire and the layout of the streets.

But the company's Promo video has one next to a similar looking block

and here we filmed it. We should these pictures to the London's rip

of the Fire Brigades union. Our aerial level platform reaches 32

metres. We had to ask sorry for those to come in, because that

reached ten metres higher than ours did. It reached a view more extra

floors. The machine you have just shown me is 90 metres plus. That

would have made such a difference to ever firefighters and our ability to

rescue people. Tonight, London's Fire Commissioner revealed they are

now looking at buying Tolley real platforms. We are fortunately just

about to be placed our aerial fleet, so as part of that, we will look at

the aerial technology that will allow us to have taller platforms.

The problem in London is that the seats are narrow and is weak looting

and the previous vehicles well to dig. Technology has changed, there

is large equipment. Absolutely, that will be one of my priorities. This

has provoked strong opinion of the causes of such a high death toll. It

will be up to the enquiry to decide whether Apollo firefighting

platforms could have made any difference. -- holler firefighting

Safety tests carried out after the Grenfell Tower fire have

so far identified flammable cladding in 14 residential high-rise

developments in nine local authorities.

They include Islington, which is going to remove

the cladding from at least one building, and Barnet and Hounslow,

where cladding is also to be removed from one high

Sonja Jessup is there for us this evening.

This is Clemens caught in Hounslow were last night the council said

that the cladding had built fire safety sets. It said the

installation inside that cladding unlike the sort used in the Grenfell

Tower, is not compatible, but it says the cladding will be taken down

as soon as possible. However, it's not clear how long is going to take.

The council is trying to reassure residents by saying that fires

individuals will be introduced from tomorrow. Some residents I spoke to

were not convinced. That order the cladding is fine and

there is no risk of fire or anything like that. But now they are saying

different stuff about it. We are so worried about it. I live on the

fifth floor and it is just worrying. My reaction is more shock and

concern for people who live above me and for when I have no children now.

I am a heavy sleeper. If I was to fall asleep into a heavy sleeper and

the building was to catch fire, I wouldn't know about it until it was

burning. I wouldn't have a clue. It's not just Hounslow. Across

London, tests are being carried out. I was in Islington where the council

says cladding will be removed there after failing safety tests. In

Barnet today, the council says it will remove cladding from three

tower blocks in Granville Road. Yesterday we talked you about Camden

Council. It is going to remove cladding from five towers on an

estate. Last night, we had about three premiere in hotels in

Tottenham, Brentford and Maidenhead, with a CD cladding does not comply

with Government regulations on tall buildings. They say the independent

regulator has sold it is safe to stay open. The key thing about all

of this is, it's clear that concerns now go beyond council high-rises.

One expert said checks should be carried out on schools and

hospitals, places of work. We know that private developers are carrying

out checks on housing in London. We also know that Wembley Stadium has

carried out a review on its cladding. It says that it is safe

and does comply with safety regulation. As you can see, it's an

incredibly complex picture. There are concerns about cladding,

sometimes that the installation used within that cladding, and confusion

about the materials used. Sometimes even about the building regulations

themselves. All the while, Londoners who are concerned about whether

their housing is safe. One other thing to mention is that tonight we

have heard that Brent Council are removing cladding from a tower block

in Wembley, too. Thank you. And today, the Mayor of London

praised the people who took the emergency calls

from the victims caught up He visited London fire

brigade's control centre in Merton with Dany Cotton,

the commissioner of London fire of course, rightly,

we've paid tribute to the firefighters,

but actually, the London Fire Brigade

also includes those who took the Also some of them,

I'm really sad to say, and so are those inside,

where the last people some of these people

in Grenfell Tower spoke to. So, really distressing

for those in the But they've got the help

and assistance they need. The London Fire Brigade

is the team and Today, London Fire Service

repeated its advice for those Stay put unless you are under

immediate threat or there Our correspondent Tom Edwards

spoke to Assistant Back the fire Grenfell Tower was an

exceptional set of circumstances, a horrific incident. I would like to

reassure people that generally fires in tower blocks are really rare.

What is important is that people know and have a plan of what to do

if there is a fire. Your advice, to stay put, when to leave, it seems to

be a grey area. What is your advice? I could understand that people would

think that is the case. The key bit of advice is, have a plan. Generally

in high-rise blocks, 99.9% of cases, the state could advice is good.

Tower blocks are built with 60 minute fire resistance, so that if

there is a fire in another part of the tower block you are generally

safe for 60 minutes. The Fire Service can come in, it was the

buyer and USA. If you are threatened by smoke with fire, then you need

consider leaving the property. The problem is, your advice hasn't

worked. Should your advice be changed, do you think? The advice

has worked, because the advice is to have a plan. The advice is, say but

unless you are threatened by smoke or flame. If you are threatened by

smoke or swim, then you need to consider leaving your property is

safe to do full. Nott at Grenfell Tower, people stayed in their flats

and they died because they followed your advice. As I say, the advice is

to stay put if you're not threatened by smoke or flame. At what point do

people leave their block if it's on fire? Because that seems to be the

grey area, it's not black and white and that seems to be the issue. If

you can see smoke or flame and you and your family are threatened by

that, then I would suggest you need to think about leaving your home is

safe to do so. In something like Grenfell Tower, this advice wouldn't

have made any difference, would it? Insert consensus, able to be blooded

evacuate, we were able to rescue a lot of people. Unfortunately, there

have been in a lot of fire fatalities that this incident, but

this is a particular set of circumstances that we need to find

out from the investigation what worthy causes, the underlying

causes. Wielding it would be forever me to comment until we know that. --

I don't think it would be fairer for me to comment.

The police have said they believe a fridge freezer started

Anyone with a Hotpoint fridge freezer with these model

numbers, which can be found inside the fridge, should

register their appliance with the manufacturer to receive any

updates either via their website or the number on the screen now.

The Government has ordered immediate testing of the Hotpoint fridge

We'll join the children of Avon Dale Park Primary School

which sits in the shadow of the tower and lost

many of its own in the tragedy of Grenfell Tower.

Researchers at Guy's Hospital have been given a huge windfall to help

them find new treatments for bladder cancer.

It's one of the most common types of the disease,

but only a tiny fraction of research funding goes into it.

?2 million has been donated by a woman whose husband

was a patient there - as Helen Drew reports.

Graham Roberts died of bladder cancer at 58.

She and Diane had been married for 33 years.

Nearly a year after his death, she is now giving

over ?1.7 million to Guy Hospital, where the doctor who treated him is

He was the most incredibly positive person.

Even when he was diagnosed, he was so determined that

Even at the point at which he knew that there weren't

great treatment options available to him, he was a glass half full

Bladder cancer is the tenth most common

And the seventh most common cause of cancer deaths.

But only receives 0.5% of research funding.

The money will be used to set up a bladder cancer by your bank

Where tissue, urine and blood samples

will be taken and used in clinical trials, as well as for research.

Based at Guy's, a team from Kings College London will be involved.

We can actually use that profile to predict how a tumour is going to

progress, but equally, how a patient is going to respond to

So, if you can kind of identify those profiles, we can say

upfront, "Well, actually, this patient would be better off getting

treatment A, rather than treatment B."

So, it can hopefully, in future, help us personalise

treatment and be much more precise about who should go on what

Some say the low level of funding for bladder cancer

has meant virtually no major development in its treatment for 30

There aren't the range of options for treatment that there are

What we felt was that we should be helping that

research in the future and making sure that

people with this type of

cancer don't have to go through what he had to.

Before he died, Graham said he wanted to give money to do

This programme was amongst the first to reveal how the Met has been

stopped from pursuing criminals on scooters,

because of the risk to the rider or members of the public.

Now in a bid to crack down on motorcycle thefts,

which have spiked in recent years, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner

herself has taken to the streets to warn riders.

The police have also released a new video of some

This new video from the Met police shows just how concerned the forces

Some people leave their chains on there.

The Commissioner herself was out early today, stopping riders,

Some people ride their scooters carrying weapons.

Some people transport drugs in them, and many,

many occasions they are used to snatch mobile phones or even carry

Such as this incident in Streatham in May.

The woman is dragged along by her hair,

after thieves made a grab for her purse.

But there are countless examples and it's not hard to find

We've had bikes stolen from outside our

So, that's why we get the alarm, we get the chains.

People in my office have had their Piaggios stolen.

And you don't actually hear of them being stolen too much.

I'm quite surprised what the office said to me

Thefts of mopeds, scooters and motor bikes have shot up in

Last year alone, there were more than 15,000 stolen across

That's more than half of all vehicle thefts.

And scooters have been used in more than 14,000 crimes.

What worries police is how unaware of some owners are of just

The same guys are getting on to be scooters,

taking the key out of the

It's as easy to steal one of these as it is to steal

An average thief could probably have one of these

As Eugene recently found out, to his cost.

I came out one day, found it was gone.

So, I bought a new bike and it wasn't chained up.

Advertising and events will run across London

The Holy month of Ramadan is coming to an end

with the Festival that follows, Eid, just days away.

But recent events mean Londoners have experienced

Our reporter Ayshea Buksh has been talking to Muslim Londoners

about what it means to them, especially given recent events.

As anyone in one of the varied and tranquil prayer rooms. Outside the

hustle and bustle of Finsbury Park where people are still leaned

flowers, putting out candles and tributes of unity and defiance.

Those are similar scenes in many other parts of London were terrible

things have happened in the past few weeks. This is but many Muslim

Londoners in the spotlight during what is a very special time of the

year. From Muslim Londoners,

it's been a Ramadan like no other. During this holiest

of months, Islamist extremists attacked London Bridge

and Borough market. The Grenfell Tower fire

in north Kensington And worshippers

were mowed down after praying at their mosque

in Finsbury Park. For 30 days, observers

fast from dawn to dusk. This time of year, that can mean

hours without food or drink. Many Muslim aid

workers and volunteers have been working with local people

affected by the Grenfell Tower fire. As a volunteer, it's definitely been

one of the most hardest Ramadan I have faced, working here

in this tragic scene. So we loved ones are still looking

for answers and this is going to be one of the hardest

Ramadans they have ever faced. A long day of fasting is broken

by a late evening meal called Iftar. This spontaneous gathering

outside the west way sports centre near

the Grenfell Tower was more

meaningful than ever. Can we please look at

how amazing this is. During Ramadan, Muslims also give

more than ever to charities and at During Ramadan, Muslims also give

more than ever to charities than at Charities, people, mums and dads

would have just been making food in their

homes and things. Let's just put them in containers

and take it wherever we So, you just had lots of people

coming with lots of food, and it was just like,

"We are here to give, we are here to help,

we are to feed people." The Ramadan Tent Project also

served free meals at Grenfell Tower and held daily Iftars

in central London for It allows us the opportunity

is to say no to fear. We say yes to initiatives

like this and spaces like this, where we have a safe

space for all to integrate, to be together, to be joined

together and to truly appreciate and understand each

other's differences. Ramadan may soon be

coming to an end, but it's spirituality will

continue to sustain many. Because of Ramadan,

they were able to call They were the point of contact that

actually saved lives. We all want to come

together and do something At the same time, pay

our respects and... Remember to love and

care for each other. I'm joined by the chairman of the

Finsbury Park mosque. Thank you for allowing us to be here tonight. How

has Ramadan been for you? No doubt, this is a very difficult time. We

have been through a difficult time during this Ramadan and, if I can

say, if there is any positive to come out of this dreadful event

during Ramadan, it's how communities get together, united, stronger

against those who tried to divide us and spread hate, fear and division.

How would you be celebrating but also incorporating and paying

tribute to those who have died and also I still in hospital? It is sad.

We are coming close to Eid and it is sad that members of our community,

the person who lost his life, a father of six children and his

family, there are another 4-mac injured people in hospital, so it is

sad to celebrate Eid in these circumstances. But let's will go on

and we will try everything we can during Eid to make and happy, to

make them feel that their communities are with them. Thank you

so much. As those aged workers said, there will be Eid celebrations

organised by them here and across London.

Thousands of pupils across hundreds of schools dressed

in green today to raise money for those affected by the fire

But it was a particularly emotional day for one school in particular -

Avon Dale Park Primary's playground is in the shadow of the tower.

It lost pupils, teachers and families in the tragedy.

Emilia Papadopoulos was invited to visit

# When I find myself in times of trouble

# All my friends will comfort me...#

Singing for their loved ones they lost nine days ago.

The Grenfell Tower fire had happened just 500

And the pupils here are reminded of it everyday.

The emotion is still very raw, but they are determined to

focus on the good memories they have of their classmates.

He was hilarious, he always made us laugh.

I remember when I was younger and some boys took a

She saw that I was upset and went and asked the boys to

I remember in football when she scored our first goal.

I was happy for her and we hugged each other.

Fergus, you were my idol in year six.

When I saw you smile, is reassured me.

And it's OK to be sad, it's OK to cry.

But it's also OK to laugh and to keep hold of

We felt it important that they keep hold of the memories.

Each classroom has created a memory wall.

So that they can talk about them, right to them, lovely

The pupils also honoured their friends memories by

And releasing a balloon for every person

Everyone here is still coming to terms with this tragedy.

Unlike the adults, the children have some new

questions about how and why this happened yards from their

That takes us to a check on the weather. Good evening to you. We've

lost the extremely high temperatures we had at the beginning of this

week. Instead, the weather has gone back to something a bit more like

normal. Just in time for the weekend. We have seen some sunshine

today, a bit more cloud creeping in, nor does well. The satellite picture

shows that quite nicely. A band of cloud, a weather front working its

way in from the North West. I mean things will continue to cloud over

from this evening. It should stay largely dry and then through the

early hours, that cloud will thicken up and may produce the odd patch of

patchy drizzle. Tebbutt is quite high but the night-time. Not nearly

as warm as it was overnight area in the week. For tomorrow, quite a

cloudy sack of the day. Things should then brighten up. Through the

morning, cloud deck enough to produce a little bit patchy rain and

drizzle. Nothing too much of you looking for water the garden. By the

afternoon, things should brighten up. Some spells of sunshine, still

be time for a shower. Chemistry is not too bad at all if you're getting

into some fun time. -- temperatures. One or two showers possible through

tomorrow evening, but a lot of dry weather as well. Into Sunday, more

the same. Perhaps some of patchy rain and drizzle, but things should

brighten up through the night. Those territories again back down into the

20s. -- temperatures. 18 westerly breeze. As we get into the side of

next week, looks like very time we could see some humid air returning

from the south again. Nothing like as hot as it was last week. That

could bring one to thunderstorms, but as we goes on, the pressure will

return from the west. We stick with that fresh appeal, a future is at

times, plenty of dry weather as well. Victoria.

Police have said the cladding and insulation used

on the Grenfell Tower failed all safety tests.

They're reviewing every organisation involved in building

and refurbishing the tower - and charges may follow.

It's also been revealed that the fire started

Meanwhile the Fire Brigades Union has said very tall ladders

may have saved lives in the Kensington tower block.

London Fire Brigade is now looking to buy vehicles designed especially

I'll be back later during the ten o'clock news, but for now

from everyone on the team have a lovely evening.

Across the country, 11 million people

But how would their landlords manage living as tenants?

It's helped me appreciate that decisions we make

The Week The Landlords Moved In starts:

I couldn't bear for Ross to risk his life for nothing.