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58 Missing, Presumed Dead Following London Tower Inferno

London police on Saturday said 58 people were confirmed dead or presumed dead following last week’s deadly blaze in a public housing block in the city.

So far 30 people are confirmed dead but police said this weekend that based on reports from the public the number now stood at 58 and that this could rise.

Associated Press reported that public anger is mounting as residents and neighbors demand answers for how the blaze early Wednesday spread so quickly and trapped so many of the tower’s 600-odd residents.

British media have reported that contractors installed a cheaper, less flame-resistant type of exterior paneling on the 24-story tower in a renovation that was completed just last year.

Meanwhile, Police Commander Stuart Cundy said it will take weeks or longer to recover and identify all the dead in the building.

“Sadly, at this time there are 58 people who we have been told were in the Grenfell Tower on the night that are missing. And therefore, sadly, I have to assume that they are dead,” he said, as quoted by AP.

He said police would consider criminal prosecutions if there is evidence of wrongdoing and that the police investigation would include scrutiny of the renovation project at the tower, which experts believe may have left the building more vulnerable to a catastrophic blaze, reported AP.

 

58 Missing, Presumed Dead Following London Tower Inferno

Public anger is mounting as residents demand answers on how Wednesday’s deadly blaze spread so quickly.

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London police on Saturday said 58 people were confirmed dead or presumed dead following last week’s deadly blaze in a public housing block in the city.

So far 30 people are confirmed dead but police said this weekend that based on reports from the public the number now stood at 58 and that this could rise.

Associated Press reported that public anger is mounting as residents and neighbors demand answers for how the blaze early Wednesday spread so quickly and trapped so many of the tower’s 600-odd residents.

British media have reported that contractors installed a cheaper, less flame-resistant type of exterior paneling on the 24-story tower in a renovation that was completed just last year.

Meanwhile, Police Commander Stuart Cundy said it will take weeks or longer to recover and identify all the dead in the building.

“Sadly, at this time there are 58 people who we have been told were in the Grenfell Tower on the night that are missing. And therefore, sadly, I have to assume that they are dead,” he said, as quoted by AP.

He said police would consider criminal prosecutions if there is evidence of wrongdoing and that the police investigation would include scrutiny of the renovation project at the tower, which experts believe may have left the building more vulnerable to a catastrophic blaze, reported AP.

 

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