Former Isle of Wight Fire Chief, Steve Apter, has been involved in helping to tackle the frightening and devastating fire that has ripped through the Grenfell Tower Block in Latimer Road, North Kensington over the past two days.
Having watched the horrifying scenes from the safe distance of the Isle of Wight, many will share the thoughts of Steve Apter, who this morning tweeted,
I woke this morning, like many, hoping yesterday had been a bad dream. Reflecting on the reality. So proud of our teams, thoughts with all.
— Steve Apter (@LFBsteveapter) June 15, 2017
Major incident
The fire, which was quickly declared a major incident by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, began in the early hours of Tuesday morning, but has only just this morning (Thursday) reached the stage of being damped down.
Twelve people are already confirmed as having lost their lives to the fire and, tragically, dozens more are expected to join the list today, as crews continue to search the building.
Full investigation
Yesterday, Steve told the press,
“The fire, which was unprecedented in its scale and speed, will be subject to a full fire investigation.
“Any lessons learnt from this will be borne out not just across London, across the UK – and lessons learnt globally.”
Background
Steve became a retained firefighter for the Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service 27 years ago.
He was promoted to Isle of Wight Fire Chief in June 2011 – taking over from Paul Street.
Moving on from the Island to become Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service’s Assistant Chief Officer he was then was handpicked to be London Fire Brigade’s Interim Deputy Commissioner in November 2016.
He is now Director of Safety and Assurance at London Fire Brigade.
Island community spirit
Many shops and businesses on the Isle of Wight have been collecting donations of money and clothing to send up to the victims of the tower block fire.
Unprecedented challenge
North Kensington Area Manager, Rob Cole, said.
“Our thoughts are with those involved in this tragic fire, and our London Fire Brigade and emergency services colleagues dealing with the incident.
“This fire was of a scale that is rarely seen, presenting an unprecedented challenge to the crews responding and their efforts to help the public.
“A full investigation will be carried out by the appropriate authorities, so it would be wrong to speculate on the circumstances around the incident.
Our sincerest thoughts go out to everyone affected by this horrendous tragedy and full praise to all the emergency services and community members who have helped the victims.
