The final death toll from the fire that destroyed the Grenfell Tower housing block in London in June is 71, after five months of painstaking search and recovery operations.

Police had previously said about 80 people died in the blaze, which tore through the 24-storey tower in west London in the middle of the night, but officers now believe all those who died in the fire have been recovered and identified.

The figure has come down because some people were reported missing several times, some people who lived in the tower and were feared dead were found to have been elsewhere on the night, and some people were falsely reported dead by fraudsters hoping to receive financial compensation.

The final toll includes 70 adults and children who died in the tower during the fire, and one baby who was stillborn shortly after the heavily pregnant mother escaped from the 21st floor, suffering severe smoke inhalation on her way down. The mother survived.

The tower was home to a tight-knit, multi-ethnic community in a deprived social housing estate within the wealthy Kensington and Chelsea borough that is also home to large numbers of millionaires.

The tragedy has prompted political debate and soul-searching about London’s stark social inequalities and whether neglect of social housing estates and the communities living in them played a part in the fire.

A criminal investigation is under way that could result in individuals or organisations being charged. A separate public inquiry aims to shed light on any flaws or irregularities in the design, construction or maintenance of the tower.

 

By Estelle Shirbon