Churches In London Ring Bells 72 Times To Mark Three Years Since The Grenfell Tower Tragedy
Written by Heartsong Live on 17th June 2020
June 14th marked three years of the Grenfell Tower fire disaster which claimed 72 lives. To commemorate the day, a virtual service was held, hosted by the Bishop of Kensington, the Rt Rev Dr Graham Tomlin.
The virtual service included a series of video messages from relatives of the victims, members of the local community and musical performances
In a video message, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the country was working to ensure such a disaster would not be repeated:
“That night, 72 men, women and children were taken from us in the cruellest of circumstances.
“As a nation, we are still dealing with the consequences of what happened and working to make sure it never happens again.
“While those affected by Grenfell are not able to gather in person, all of us in this country are with you in spirit.”
As relatives paid tribute to their loved ones, faith leaders conducted sermons and reflections online throughout the day
And then at 6pm, churches across London rang their bells 72 times in memory of those who lost their lives
Furthermore, The Grenfell United Survivors’ Group asked homeowners across the UK to display green lights from windows from 10.30pm.
The fire began as a small kitchen fire on the fourth floor of the 23-storey tower block situated in North Kensington, west London. It began just before 1am on June 14th 2017.
Within minutes, flames had claimed a good part of the exterior of the building, spreading to all four sides with such speed that by 3am, most of the upper floors were alight. The cause of this has been said to be the flammable cladding which the building was wrapped in
Firefighters battled for nearly 24 hours before the inferno was eventually brought under control at 1.14am on June 15
The Grenfell Tower tragedy is said to be the most deadly domestic blaze since World War Two. However, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has warned “the loss of life could be worse still” if a similar tragedy occurred.
The public inquiry into the disaster had to be paused in March due to the pandemic. Its first report criticised firefighters’ actions on the night
The inquiry is due to restart on the 6th of July
