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Grenfell Inquiry day 55: resident on 19th floor ‘always felt uncomfortable’ with stay put advice
Resident says she always “felt uncomfortable with stay put advice” as evidence from survivors continues at inquiry.
Key points
- 19th floor resident was “never happy” with stay put advice given by building managers
- She ignored advice to return to her flat as she fled burning tower
- Firefighter who came to building on Saturday before fire “did not test alarm”
A resident who lived on the 19th floor of Grenfell Tower has told the inquiry into last year’s fire that she “was never happy with” the stay put advice given by Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation.
Meron Mekonnen, who ignored the advice and escaped the blaze last June along with her two daughters said: “It always made me feel uncomfortable, to stay in my flat on the 19th floor knowing there was a fire in the building. That day I didn’t take the advice and decided to leave.”
She told the inquiry’s lawyers that the fact there was only single stairwell with poor ventilation had “always worried” her. She added: “Being so high up, I know there’s no way a ladder could reach us to rescue us.”
Ms Mekonnen also told how she had been visited by a firefighter on the Saturday before the fire. In written evidence presented to the inquiry she said the firefighter did not test the alarm.
“Instead he pointed to the light on the alarm in the hallway and told me and my partner that the light confirmed that the alarm was connected to the main system,” she said.
She later said that she did not hear any alarms on the night of the fire.
Ms Mekonnen said she only became aware of the fire when her aunt Hiwot Dagnachew, who lived on the fifth floor of the tower, called her on the phone.
She left the flat immediately despite seeing no evidence of fire in her home. She later told how she ignored people telling her to go back to her flat as she made her way out of the tower.
In her written statement, Ms Mekonnen also said that firefighters “were overwhelmed” by the situation on the night “as they were unable or unprepared to tackle a fire of that scale”.
She added: “We could see the fire spreading rapidly and uncontrollably whilst we were standing outside the tower and this is why I do not understand why the fire brigade kept telling people to stay in their flats.”
Ms Dagnachew, who lived with her partner and two children, also gave evidence to the inquiry today.
In her written statement, she outlined a number of problems with the support her family received from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) after the fire. These included issues around applying for a replacement passport and with arranging taxis to take her children to school from temporary accommodation.
“I just feel let down by RBKC throughout this whole process,” wrote Ms Dagnachew. “We feel like we are still being ridiculed for the issues we are raising which are serious and important to us, in the same way in which we were ridiculed about our concerns before the fire.
“I would expect RBKC to be more compassionate given the circumstances but this has not been the case.”
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
