The Grenfell Tower Fire (ePub)
A Firefighter's View
Imprint: White Owl
File Size: 1.8 MB (.epub)
Pages: 192
ISBN: 9781399064484
Published: 20th February 2025
| Other formats available | Price |
|---|---|
| The Grenfell Tower Fire Hardback Add to Basket | £15.40 |
In the early hours of 14th June 2017, a fire began in a kitchen on the fourth floor of a twenty-four-storey block of flats in West London. A fire that should have been contained within the original compartment ripped up the outside of the building within minutes. Procedures and systems that had worked for decades failed resulting in the loss of seventy-two lives.
Yet this was not the first time a breakdown of compartmentation had caused a loss of life. Just eight years earlier, a fire at Lakanal House in South London had claimed the lives of six people. How then could this happen again? Nor was it just one failure as panels, inadequate fire-stopping, construction of the windows, failure of fire doors and the smoke ventilation system all contributed to the rapid fire spread.
This book gives a firefighter’s perspective of the deregulation that caused the tragedy and describes what firefighters were confronted with that June night in 2017. It places that deregulation chronologically alongside a career that spanned three decades including nine years in the training department of the London Fire Brigade.
It proposes the causes are far deeper and wider than many think. A systemic deterioration of standards in testing of materials, building control, maintenance, inspections, fire safety and enforcement.
Tony Sullivan’s Grenfell Tower is a deeply compelling and insightful account of one of the most tragic and avoidable disasters in modern British history. Written from the perspective of a seasoned firefighter with decades of experience, the book meticulously examines the systemic failures that led to the Grenfell Tower fire of June 14, 2017, in which seventy-two lives were lost.
NetGalley, Joanne Ellis
Sullivan goes beyond simply recounting the harrowing events of that night. He situates the tragedy within a broader context of deregulation, declining safety standards, and repeated warnings that were ignored. The book draws crucial parallels between Grenfell and earlier fires, such as the 2009 Lakanal House fire, highlighting the alarming pattern of negligence in fire safety enforcement. By combining personal experience with technical analysis, Sullivan offers a unique perspective that is both authoritative and deeply personal.
One of the book’s greatest strengths is its accessibility. While it delves into complex issues of building regulations, fire safety protocols, and the failures of compartmentation, Sullivan presents these topics in a way that is understandable to both professionals and the general public. His writing is clear and direct, making the book a vital resource for anyone interested in fire safety, policy reform, or the broader implications of government deregulation.
Ultimately, Grenfell Tower is not just a retrospective on what went wrong; it is a call to action. Sullivan’s message is clear: unless real systemic changes are made, tragedies like Grenfell will happen again. This is an essential read for those who want to understand not just the events of that fateful night, but the deeper failures that allowed it to happen.
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
NetGalley, A D
I remember the news the day the tower caught fire and by reading this I feel I have a wider view of what happened before and after the towers caught fire. This gives more of an impact of the fires on the fire service and the information that the press did not divulge.
About Tony Sullivan
Tony Sullivan lives in South East London with his wife and three children. His first book, King Arthur: Man or Myth? was published in 2020. Three further books followed in 2022: The Battles of King Arthur investigating the famous battle list from the Historia Brittonum; The Real Gladiator, looking at the historical reality behind the 2000 film; and The Roman King Arthur?: Lucius Artorius Castus, which dismantles the Artorius-Arthur theory and places this historical Roman officer in the reigns of Severus and Caracalla.
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