Residents of a high-rise block have told how relieved they are to escape a fire after the Grenfell Tower-style cladding was removed.
All those in the block safely escaped a blaze, as campaigners say it is a stark reminder of the urgent need to remove dangerous material from high-rises.
The fire at the 23-storey Ferrier Point block in Newham, East London, broke out in a 12th floor flat on Monday.
Around 150 residents got out before firefighters arrived at 6.22pm. They had the blaze under control by 7.45pm.
Ramotu Oseni, 57, who lives on the 10th floor, said: “If we had not got rid of that cladding then it would have been another Grenfell. We feel very lucky.”
Ferrier Point’s cladding – aluminium composite material, the same used on Grenfell – was removed last year.
Taimorshah Nasir, 46, and wife Zuhra, 30, fled their 11th floor flat with their two children. Mr Nasir said: “There was smoke coming out of the window and we rushed down.
“If this happened before the cladding had come off it could have been another disaster.”
Will Martin, of UK Cladding Action Group, said: “This seems to be further proof that if dangerous material is removed then fires can be survived. How has the Government not managed to have every tower made safe?”
The Tories have missed their target to replace cladding on all high-rises by this month. Around 500,000 people are still in buildings with unsafe materials.
The Ministry for Housing said: “We have given £1.6 billion to ensure unsafe cladding is removed.”
The fire at Grenfell, West London, in 2017 killed 72 people. An inquiry found the cladding was the main reason for the rapid spread. Our Grenfell, Never Again campaign is calling for dangerous cladding to be axed from all buildings.
