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Grenfell Inquiry day 68: KCTMO removed fire door self-closing mechanism and never replaced it
Survivor tells inquiry that managing agent took out the vital self-closer from her fire door and never replaced it, during repair work in 2012.
Key points
- Latest survivor to give evidence reveals faults with fire doors
- Natasha Elcock tells inquiry after her door fell out of its a frame, a workman removed the self-closer and never replaced it
- Ms Elcock also reports gaps in refurbished windows which she “could get her fingers in”
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry today heard from Natasha Elcock who escaped from the 11th floor of the tower and has since become a prominent spokesperson for survivors’ group Grenfell United.
She told the inquiry that after her front door was replaced with a new fire door in 2012, the new door swiftly broke.
“I was going out and it literally just dropped off its hinges,” she said in evidence today.
She said that she reported the fault to the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO), which sent a workman around to fix the issue.
“Someone came out and took out the self-closing mechanism and they never came back,” Ms Elcock said. "Once he took it out, the door no longer closed by itself... He said someone would be back to replace it, but that never happened.”
Fire doors taken from Grenfell Tower after the blaze by the Metropolitan Police failed to resist flame for the legal minimum of 30 minutes – lasting only for 15 in tests.
Self-closers are a crucial element of fire door safety, because they prevent fires spreading through common areas if someone doesn’t close it when they flee. They also help hold the door in place during a blaze.
Ms Elcock became the latest in a line of witnesses to report issues with her windows – which were fitted in the same refurbishment which installed the cladding.
She said there was “a gap which the drafts would come through” in the new windows, which were installed on top of the old wooden frames. She said this was around 1cm wide.
An expert report has previously said combustible materials and gaps around the windows gave the fire a root in and out of people’s flats.
On the night of the blaze, Ms Elcock was at home with her partner and her daughter, and was awoken by the sound of sirens.
She was told to stay in her flat and await rescue. Ms Elcock flooded her house with water from the bath and water from fire fighters hoses also penetrated through the walls and windows and into her home.
She phoned the fire brigade regularly, as the situation with smoke in her flat worsened, at one stage being put through to Glasgow due to calls to the London Fire Brigade being overloaded.
She was advised to stay until 3am – despite smoke filling her flat and the fire penetrating into her kitchen. However, at this point the smoke and heat on the landing made it impossible for the family to flee.
On her way down, she tripped on a body she recognised as one of her neighbours. The family finally escaped the tower at 4.47am – making them among the last to leave alive.
The inquiry also heard today from witnesses Hanan Wahabi and Salah Chebiouni – who had been due to give evidence yesterday but were delayed due to a debate over reporting restrictions.
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry
Closing statements
Day 85: victims' lawyers attack the fire brigade
Further expert evidence
Including some additional evidence from emergency call handlers, bereaved and relatives
Day 84: further evidence from survivors and relatives
Day 83: swift evacuation of tower possible if residents alerted
Day 82: initial fire was extinguished but then returned to the flat
Day 81: overheating fridge-freezer most likely cause of fire
Day 80: fire doors installed did not match product tested
Day 79: resident advised to stay put despite fire in flat
Day 78: insulation and cladding material below required standard
Day 77: molten plastic spread blaze down tower
Day 76: 'stay put' should be dropped when fire spreads across floors
Other witness evidence
Police, ambulance, gas suppliers, council, TMO and call room operators give evidence
Day 75: call room operators give evidence
Day 74: further evidence from TMO officers
Day 73: TMO boss failed to pass information to firefighters
Day 72: fire finally extinguished when gas switched off
Day 71: further questions over stay put advice
Day 70: the police evidence
The bereaved, survivors and relatives’ evidence
Day 69: video shows smoke billowing through fire door
Day 68: KCTMO removed self closing mechanism and never replaced it
Day 67: gaps in cladding fixed with duct tape
Day 66: 'don't fix broken system with a sticking plaster'
Day 65: survivor dragged disabled man down nine floors to safety
Day 64: KCTMO 'did not replace broken fire door'
Day 63: foam insulation inside cladding 'exposed' says survivor
Day 62: father gives harrowing account of son's death
Day 61: council’s management organisation slammed for faulty electrics
Day 60: stay put advice ‘led to deaths’, residents say
Day 59: residents describe problems with new windows
Day 58: survivor describes how daughter saved his life
Day 57: firefighter evidence ‘a slap in the face’, says survivor
Day 56: relations with contractor were ‘toxic’
Day 55: resident 'never happy' with stay-put advice
Day 54: tenant gives evidence about housing association
Day 53: stay put advice 'felt like trap'
Day 52: resident saved by son's phone call
The firefighters’ evidence
Day 51: firefighter feared encouraging residents to jump
Day 50: the LFB commissioner
Day 49: fire chief reveals frustration over lack of building plans
Day 48: internal fire spread 'bigger story' than cladding
Day 47: fire officer considered evacuating crews over building collapse fears
Day 46: 'we were improvising' senior firefighter admits
Day 45: firefighter urged for abandonment of 'stay put' policy
Day 44: firefighter recalls radio signal difficulties
Day 43: call hander 'uncomfortable' with insisting residents stay put
Day 42: residents only told to leave if they called fire brigade back
Day 41: breathing equipment delay 'hampered rescues on upper floors'
Day 40: chiefs told firefighters to abandon policy
Day 39: firefighters reveal dramatic rescue of children
Day 38: firefighters issue aplogies to families
Day 37: council 'unable to provide tower plans'
Day 36: QC defends inquiry process
Day 35: Javid would welcome interim recommendations
Day 34: water from hose 'too weak' to reach the flames
Day 33: 'oh my god, we've been telling people to stay put'
Day 32: further fire fighter describes lack of equipment and low water pressure
Day 31: 'incredibly difficult' task of recording information outlined
Day 30: struggle to maintain control over rescue operation described
Day 29: fire service 'overwhelmed' by survival guidance calls
Day 28: 'the building beat us'
Day 27: firefighters 'forced to abandon plans to reach roof'
Day 26: poor signage hindered rescue efforts
Day 25: water pressure left firefighting equipment 'like garden hose'
Day 24: decision to abandon 'stay put' explored
Day 23: TV images 'could have assissted' rescue effort
Day 22: description of hectic scenes in the control centre
Day 21: account from the fire service 'nerve centre'
Day 20: firefighter describes 'huge volume' of calls from trapped residents
Day 19: firefighter 'given no training on cladding fires'
Day 18: evacuation would have been 'huge catastrophe'
Day 17: firefighters describe access and lift issues
Day 16: scenes of carnage likened to 9/11
Day 15: firefighters recount trauma of survival guidance calls
Day 14: firefighters describe spread of blaze
Day 13: firefighters recall radio difficulties
Day 12: "it was like a war zone"
Day 11: questions raised over fire fighters' radios
Day 10: watch manager emotional under questioning
Day nine: lead firefighter 'not trained in stay put policy'
The expert reports: authors give evidence to inquiry
Day eight: where the fire started
Day seven: what was in the cladding?
Day six: the cause and spread of the fire
Day five: expert highlights key issues
Day four: firefighters defend response to fire
Day three: council and contractors appear for the first time
Day two: lawyers for the survivors make their case
Day one: expert evidence released on cladding and stay put
The commemoration hearings
30 May: Grenfell Council 'recognised it should not house disabled victim above four storeys'
29 May: Anger on day six of the Grenfell Inquiry
25 May: Grenfell families 'forced to live in chimney with stay put policy'
24 May: Grenfell family complained about father being housed on 17th floor
23 May: Tributes to children on third day of Grenfell hearings
22 May: Emotions run high as Grenfell bereaved shown footage of the tower burning
21 May: Grenfell victims share tributes as inquiry opens