Reuters

The newspaper La Jornada
Thursday, September 5, 2024, p. 25

London. A public inquiry into the devastating 2017 fire at Grenfell Tower in London that killed 72 people has blamed the disaster on failings by the government, the construction industry and, most importantly, companies that installed flammable cladding on the exterior.

The fire ripped through the 23-storey social housing block in one of London’s wealthiest areas in the early hours of 14 June 2017. It was the deadliest residential blaze the country has seen since World War II.

The simple truth is that all the deaths that occurred were preventable.said inquiry chairman Martin Moore-Bick.

In its long-awaited final report, the inquiry places most of the blame on companies involved in maintaining and refurbishing the building, failings by local and national authorities and firms that dishonestly marketed combustible cladding materials as safe.

There was also widespread criticism, with blame being placed on the government of the day, the Kensington and Chelsea local authority, industry, regulatory groups, individuals and an ill-prepared fire service for years of inaction on fire safety in housing estates.

Not all of them bear the same degree of responsibility for the final catastrophe, however, as our reports show, they all contributed to it in one way or another, in most cases through incompetence, but in some cases through dishonesty and greed.Moore-Bick said.

The nearly 1,700-page investigation report states that the inferno was the culmination of decades of failure in which economic profits were put before people.

“Governments should have a duty to safeguard life by protecting us from corporate greed,” said Grenfell United, a group representing some survivors and grieving families. “But for too long they have been helping corporations by making it easier for them to make profits and dictating regulation.”

Although British police said 58 people and 19 companies and organisations were under investigation, the legal proceedings – including those for corporate manslaughter and fraud – could take years because of the complexity involved in studying the investigation report.

The prime minister apologizes

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has apologised to the families of the victims and survivors on behalf of the British state, saying they had been failed for years.

“It should never have happened. The country failed in its most fundamental duty: to protect you and your loved ones,” he said in parliament, as heartbroken relatives looked on. “Today is a long-awaited day of truth, but it must now lead to a day of justice.”