'I survived Grenfell and little has changed - the perpetrators should be jailed'
Six years ago, Edward Daffarn heard his neighbour's fire alarm going off from his 16th floor flat in Grenfell Tower.
He put it down to him burning his dinner, until screams echoed down the hallway of the 24-storey block in North Kensington.
Within minutes, flames had engulfed the exterior of the building and by 3am, most of the upper floors were alight, with flammable cladding accelerating the spread of the fire beyond what residents, the fire brigade or anyone else could have imagined.
What began as a small kitchen fire in a fourth floor flat ended in terrible tragedy claiming the lives of 72 people.
Ed is still haunted by that night on June 14, 2017.
Firefighter used selfie in front of smouldering Grenfell Tower on Tinder profile
He said: "I heard my neighbour's smoke alarm going off and I didn't think anything of it. Actually, I just thought he's probably burnt some toast or whatever.
"And then like 10 minutes later on, I heard some shouting from the communal area outside my flat and that got me out of bed.
A silent march will be held tonight to commemorate the 72 lives killed in the tragedy (PA)"I went to open my front door, expecting to see my neighbour apologising and instead of that, I see this thick, acrid smoke and I just slammed the door closed.
"My heart sank and I was like 'this is really serious'." Edward was aware of the building's 'stay put' policy and had planned to remain in his flat.
But moments later his friend from the fifth floor, who had already escaped, rang his phone. "He just shouted at me: 'Get out.. get the f*** out now.'"
He told MyLondon: "He said it so powerfully that I didn't even argue with him. I went to my bathroom and got a wet towel and put it around me, went out into the communal hallway to try and make my way over to where the exit for the stairwell was.
"Instead of finding the door, I found the wall next to the door. I started panicking and let the towel go and started inhaling the smoke. And then literally as I was like, you know, it was like that was it for me, a firefighter pulled me and got me out."
The firefighter had been searching for his neighbour after his son had alerted the brigade that his dad was missing. Tragically, Edwards's neighbour, 69-year-old Joeseph Daniels didn't make it out of the building.
Abandoned after tragedy
Ed says residents have been abandoned following the devastating blaze (PA)But Edward described Grenfell as a tragedy of three parts: the pre-fire safety concerns being dismissed, the night itself and the 'abandonment' of residents in the years that followed.
He said: "I was literally standing underneath the burning wreck of Grenfell and I was convinced that the fire would act as a catalyst for social change, that something so awful couldn't happen without something fundamentally changing."
Dragons' Den star Steven Bartlett mentoring young survivors of Grenfell fire
Edward, who used to work as a social worker, believes that the community's frustrations are turning into anger as the fight for justice surpasses the sixth anniversary.
He explained: "I think we understood that things couldn't change overnight, but they needed to change. But we need justice, we need to hear the clink of handcuffs. We need the perpetrators [responsible for the issues that led to the fire] in court and in jail.
"We need people to pay a price for what happened. We can't just have Grenfell happening and the world just continues as if nothing has happened."
He added that he can't move on with his life because there's been nobody held to account: "How do you start living your life if you're still trying to fight, wasn't Grenfell enough? Wasn't what happened to us enough? I lay the blame for that failure on the government's incompetence and indifference that's led to so little being delivered."
With the details of Phase 2 of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry not expected until 2024, Edward says that people can't stop applying pressure for change.
"The one thing that the government want everyone to do is to move on from Grenfell, knock the tower down and move on. The one thing that we need to do is keep Grenfell in the public consciousness," he added.
"So keep coming to our silent walks, follow Grenfell United on social media, and support things like Steve McQueen's exhibition installation at the Serpentine Gallery and the play that's coming on at the National Theatre, it all helps the fight for justice."
Council 'committed to survivors'
Today marks six years since the Grenfell Tower fire (PA)Leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council Cllr Elizabeth Campbell said: “Six years on, the Grenfell tragedy remains etched into the memories of people in our communities and Londoners right across the capital. The council’s commitment, and my own commitment, to survivors, the bereaved and local residents is unwavering.
“Our thoughts are always with the people who lost their lives, their loved ones and their homes and we continue to be inspired by the courage shown by the families in their search for justice, and for change.
“We will keep listening, keep improving, and keep supporting local people as we meet the challenge the bereaved and survivors have set us – to become the best council, as a real legacy from the tragedy.”
A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson said: “Our thoughts are with the bereaved families, survivors and residents as they remember those who lost their lives in the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
“It is absolutely unacceptable for anyone to have to live in an unsafe building and residents’ safety and well-being should always be the utmost priority. Building owners and developers must act quickly to fix any dangerous defects so residents can finally get on with their lives.
"We have been clear that those responsible must pay to end the crisis. All developers who have signed the developer remediation contract now have a legal duty to get on with remediation. We are monitoring their progress very closely to ensure this work is completed urgently and safely, and, if it is not, we will act accordingly.”
On Wednesday evening, the annual silent walk will take place in memory of those who died, with people encouraged to wear green to show they “stand united in the fight for justice”.
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