A child and an adult have been taken to hospital after the Acton high-rise fire broke out in a flat on the ninth floor of a tower block.
The blaze took hold inside the 12-storey building on Trinity Way in the early hours of Monday. Both casualties had managed to get out of the flat before firefighters arrived, but they were treated for smoke inhalation at the scene before being taken to hospital for further care.
Key facts
- Where: a flat on the ninth floor of a 12-storey block on Trinity Way, Acton, west London
- Who was hurt: a child and an adult, both treated for smoke inhalation and taken to hospital
- Emergency response: five fire engines and around 35 firefighters
- Status: the fire was brought under control by 2.12am; the cause is believed to be accidental
Five engines sent to Trinity Way
Firefighters from the London Fire Brigade were called to the tower block in the early hours of Monday morning. Five fire engines and around 35 firefighters attended, tackling the flames on the ninth floor of the 12-storey building.
Crews brought the blaze under control by 2.12am. Fires above ground level demand a heavy response: firefighters work in breathing apparatus, hose lines have to be run up stairwells, and corridors and escape routes must be kept clear for residents at the same time. High-rise callouts are among the most resource-intensive incidents the brigade handles, which is why so many appliances were sent.
Child and adult treated for smoke inhalation
The child and the adult had already left the flat by the time crews reached the scene. Paramedics treated both of them for the effects of smoke inhalation before they were taken to hospital.
Smoke, rather than flames, is what most often puts flat-fire casualties in hospital. Its effects can worsen in the hours after exposure, which is why fire and ambulance crews treat it as a priority at the scene, and why casualties are routinely taken to hospital for checks even when they have walked out of the building themselves. The London Ambulance Service routinely sends crews to serious fires to work alongside firefighters, assessing casualties at the scene and deciding who needs hospital treatment.
Toaster thought to be the cause
The fire is believed to have been accidental. It is thought to have started when a toaster set light to combustible materials kept too close to it. Enquiries into the full circumstances are continuing.
The suspected accidental cause sets it apart from a flat fire in Kilburn that led to a man being arrested on suspicion of arson.
Kitchen electrics and tower-block safety
The London Fire Brigade urges anyone using toasters and other small kitchen appliances to keep them well away from tea towels, curtains, paper and anything else that can catch fire, to unplug them when they are not in use, and never to leave them switched on and unattended. Crumbs allowed to build up in the base of a toaster can also become a fire hazard.
The brigade also stresses the importance of having working smoke alarms on every level of the home and testing them regularly, giving everyone inside vital early warning and time to get out. It offers free home fire safety visits to Londoners who want advice on reducing the risk of a fire where they live.
The Acton blaze comes amid continued scrutiny of fire safety in the capital’s tower blocks following the fatal Neutron Tower fire. For residents forced out of their homes by a tower fire, the disruption can last far longer than the blaze itself — families displaced by the Poplar tower fire were still in hotels a week later.
Investigation continues
Fire investigators will now work to establish the full circumstances of the blaze, although it is already believed to have been accidental rather than started deliberately.
