A London assembly member has came out and said that no fire alarms were heard in the latest apartment fires in Barking.
Twenty flats with wooden balconies were destroyed and another 10 damaged in the fire in De Pass Gardens on Sunday. Assembly member Andrew Boff said no fire alarm sounded during the blaze, which he said was “crazy” and London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the “shocking” fire could have “easily resulted in fatalities”.
“I live nearby so I went to the building to help get people out”, Mr Boff said.
“At that time, only two floors were alight but when I came out, the entire building was in flames, perhaps something to do with these wooden balconies on the outside.
“I was also struck that there was no fire alarm. The fire alarms do not work – which to me, seems crazy.”
I was in this building trying to get people out.
Questions to @LondonFire :
Did the absence of a fire alarm hamper evacuation? I heard no fire alarms.
There appeared to be an issue with finding a water supply.
What is the advice given on wooden clad balconies. https://t.co/c1khykFVQn— Andrew Boff (@AndrewBoff) June 9, 2019
Luckily, only two injuries were reported. A man and a woman were treated for smoke inhalation, but no one was seriously injured.
Yesterday's fire in #Barking could easily have resulted in fatalities, and I am grateful to @LondonFire and the local authority for acting as quickly as they did. My statement: pic.twitter.com/ClD2iaF5cd
— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) June 10, 2019
People affected by the fire were told to “take rest” at the Thames View Community Centre which is roughly a mile away from the scene.
