The whole building in Freshwater Road was affected by the fire (credit: LFB)
A high rise in Freshwater Road was extensively damaged after a fire ripped through the building at around 2.45am on Monday, 26 August.
More than 80 people had to be evacuated from their homes with some families having lost everything.
Around 225 firefighters tackled the blaze and 40 fire engines were called to the building.
The structure itself was known to have fire safety issues, including non compliant cladding.
New equipment including drones and 64-metre and 32-metre turntable ladders to provide incident commanders with a vantage point for assessing the scene were used at the scene. The Brigade also used water towers to deliver water on to the fire from above.
The fire took nearly nine hours to get under control.
The whole of the building was affected by the fire, including scaffolding surrounding the property and the roof.
Among the residents who lost belongings, was a bride getting married in a matter of weeks, who lost her wedding dress.
Barking and Dagenham Council have now set up an official fundraising page to help support the victims.
As well as the fundraiser, Barking and Dagenham council has been supporting residents left homeless at an emergency rest centre and ensuring that everyone affected has access to essential services, including emergency accommodation for those unable to return home with nowhere to stay.
A full investigation into the cause of the fire is now taking place and is expected to take several days due to the extensive damage.
Speaking on the day, London Fire Commissioner Andy Roe said: “The first crew arrived within five minutes and the second crew arrived within six minutes. An aerial appliance also arrived in under six minutes. To allow us to focus our resources on the incident, we declared a major incident, which has now been stood down. I am immensely grateful to the crews and officers who have operated in the most dangerous conditions to both rescue people and bring the incident under control despite being faced with a significant building failure.
“The building has a number of fire safety issues known to London Fire Brigade. A full simultaneous evacuation of the building was immediately carried out and a significant search and rescue operation took place.
“I am pleased to confirm that everyone has been accounted for. More than 80 people were evacuated with firefighters leading residents out to safety and carrying out 20 rescues. This included using fire escape hoods, which can provide 15 minutes of clean, filtered air in smoke-filled environments, helping individuals stay safe until they can be rescued or reach safety. Four people were treated on scene by London Ambulance Service crews, with two taken to hospital for smoke inhalation.
“The Brigade’s Control Officers took 16 calls to the fire, including successfully giving vital fire survival guidance to a number of people using our Fire Survival Guidance App, which allows information to be exchanged between Control and the incident ground in a timely, accurate and consistent manner. They are also to be commended for their calm professionalism as the building began to fail.
“We have commenced a full and detailed investigation into the cause of this fire, and we are working closely with police colleagues. However, due to the extensive damage to the building with parts of it now being declared unsafe, access may be limited.
“This will be a protracted investigation and our fire investigation and fire safety officers are likely to be on scene for several days. We know there will undoubtedly be concerns around potential fire safety issues, and this investigation will be a priority for our officers over the coming weeks.
“Our thoughts are with all those who have been affected and we will remain present in the local community throughout the coming days to provide support where needed.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank our crews, Control Officers, fire safety officers and support staff who worked incredibly hard to resolve the incident and to ensure everyone was safe. I would also like to thank our partners for their support.”
