Police warn the number of people dead or presumed missing has risen to 79 as criticism is levelled against the government for its response to the tragedy.
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London police say the number of people dead or presumed missing following last week’s tower block fire has risen to 79.
New images show the scale of destruction inside the burnt-out ruin of Grenfell Tower pic.twitter.com/ZK0nhe9Y2i
— Press Association (@PA) June 18, 2017
UK Prime Minister Theresa May is chairing another meeting of the Grenfell Tower Recovery Task Force today, amid criticism from the opposition Labour party of the government’s response to the tragedy. Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said:
“The people I’ve met in the church today, and I’ve met every over the last few days, are showing their resilience. They’re showing a community coming together to grieve. But also a community frustrated and yes angry. Angry not simply at the poor response. In the days afterwards from the council and the government, but the years of neglect from the council and successive governments.”
Search and recovery efforts are likely to go on for weeks, if not months, authorities warn.
There are fears there may have been people in the building who may not have been reported to the police. They say that this, combined with the almost “indescribable” extent of the damage from the fire means the bodies of some of those missing may never be identified.
However, police did confirm that five people who had been reported missing have since been found safe and well.