Poplar tower fire residents remain in hotels more than a week after the fatal blaze at Neutron Tower, with no date set for their return home.
One man died and more than 50 people were made temporarily homeless after flames ripped through parts of the 17th and 18th floors of the block on Blackwall Way on 12 September, the BBC reported. Those forced out are living in hotels without cooking or laundry facilities while investigations, safety assessments and repairs continue.
Adam, who lives in a 12th-floor flat with his partner Danielle, told the BBC the couple were in “limbo”. “Something has to be done and it has to be done soon but its not right how they’re treating us at the moment,” he said. “We both didn’t go to work last week as we had to sort various things out…it’s been tough.”
Ayaz Rahman, who escaped the fire with his disabled wife Bushra Chowdhry, said they have been moved to different rooms in their hotel twice in the past week. “It’s a challenging situation every day we are facing,” he told the BBC. Mrs Chowdhry said: “The more the days go on, the more we realise we are homeless, we don’t have anything to go back to.”
Katarzyna Krupecka, a fifth-floor resident, said hotel life was taking its toll. “It’s not living, yes you have a roof over your head but I really wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy,” she told BBC London. “You’re living out of a suitcase, you don’t have access to a washing machine, you don’t have access to cooking equipment.”
“It’s very disruptive to education, we can see the children being affected,” she added. “I understand they can’t give us a definitive answer but I would at least like some sort of time frame…I want to go back home.”
First Port, which manages the ninth floor and above, said it could not allow residents back until the building was confirmed safe. “Our priority is to support residents while the necessary assessments of the building continue and to enable them to return home as soon as it is confirmed safe to do so,” a spokesperson said. “Given the seriousness of the incident, we cannot provide a definitive date for their return at this stage.” Residents were told in a recent letter to expect at least another eight days in hotels.
Notting Hill Genesis, which manages the lower floors, said it had extended hotel bookings until 29 September “to provide certainty for the days ahead”, and that its teams were liaising with First Port, the London Fire Brigade, Tower Hamlets council and police.
Several residents told the BBC they believed the fire may have been linked to a flood in the building the previous day, while many said they were alerted by neighbours because fire alarms did not sound and emergency lighting failed to activate. These remain residents’ claims; the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
London Fire Brigade said it sent 10 fire engines and 70 firefighters to the blaze and spent two hours bringing the flames under control.
The fatal blaze came just a day after the block had waited 31 weeks for a building safety approval — a troubled history detailed in our earlier report on the Neutron Tower fire.
It follows wider debate over the future of London’s ageing tower blocks — Lewisham council recently abandoned plans to demolish Milford Towers in Catford, opting to retrofit instead, while Southwark council has approved a major overhaul of its social housing allocations.
