Grenfell Tower inferno: Prime Minister orders full public inquiry amid praise for `police shield`

The Prime Minister today praised the “heroic” collaboration of police and fire services as devastating consequences of the west London tower block inferno dawned on the nation. As Theresa May called a “full” public inquiry into the tragedy which has claimed 17 lives officially with the death toll certain to rise, she spoke passionately of physical support given to emergency crews while tackling the blaze. Mrs May explained that as firefighters dashed into the flaming Grenfell Tower, Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers raised their riot shields to protect their London Brigade colleagues from molten debris falling from the 24-storey building. Fire crews rescued 65 adults and children from the 1970s-built block of flats, but some stayed in their homes, trapped by smoke and flames. Dozens are missing. A total of 78 people were treated in hospitals following the blaze, including some of the 250 firefighters. More than 30 people remain in hospital – 17 of whom are in a critical condition. London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton admitted on Thursday (June 15) that although her crews had identified a number of victims, “there will be more”. Asked how many were still missing, MPS Commander Stuart Cundy said it would be “wrong and incredibly distressing” to give a number. “I know one person was reported 46 times to the casualty bureau,” he said. Search and rescue crews have reached the top floor of the building, but the severity of the fire and amount of debris meant a thorough search would be “difficult and painstaking”, Ms Cotton said. She said questions regarding the safety of the building had prevented a full search to date, adding that the full extent of casualties may not be known “for weeks”. The cause of the fire, which took more than 24 hours to bring under control, remains unknown. The blaze, which one survivor described as “hell on earth”, broke out early on Wednesday (June 14) when up to 600 residents were in the building. Burning tenants jumped from upper floors as parents dropped screaming babies and children from windows in desperate efforts to save them. Some residents tried to flee using ropes and parachutes made from sheets at the north Kensington block. An action group of residents had called for years for the building to be torn down because of an “appalling” fire risk. And there were claims that recent refurbishment work played a part in allowing the blaze to spread. Reg Kerr-Bell, a former chairman of Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation, which runs the block, said he had stepped down over concerns about how it was run. He said the £8.6million refurbishment had been a “disaster waiting to happen”. London Labour MP David Lammy has branded the tower block blaze an act of “corporate manslaughter”. Speaking to BBC Radio 4`s Today programme, the Tottenham MP called for arrests to be made over the disaster, as questions grow about how the fire spread so quickly. “This is the richest borough in our country treating its citizens in this way and we should call it what it is, it’s corporate manslaughter,” he said. “That’s what it is, and there should be arrests made, frankly. It is an outrage. “Many of us across the country have been caught up in an election, knocking on housing estate doors right across the country, travelling up to the top floors of tower blocks and we know as politicians that the conditions in this country are unacceptable. “We built buildings in the 70s, those 70s buildings – many of them should be demolished – they haven’t got easy fire escapes, they’ve got no sprinklers, it’s totally, totally unacceptable in Britain that this is allowed to happen and people lose their lives in this way. People should be held to account.” Mrs May described the fire as an “appalling tragedy”. She, along with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, visited the scene on Thursday morning. “Once the scene is secure, once the recovery is complete, then an investigation will take place into the cause of the fire and if there