A woman who reported she was trapped in the Grenfell Tower as a raging inferno tore through the building live-tweeted her escape.
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, a fire made its way though the 24-storey tower on the Lancaster West Estate in west London.
200 firefighters and 40 engines were sent to the scene to tackle the huge blaze.
A woman known on Twitter as @rsrzy tweeted her first update at about 1:40am saying she was ‘stuck in this block’.
She told her followers that she felt she couldn’t leave her house for fear of dying from the smoke.
It took her another hour until she posted her next update, which was to say that people were jumping out of windows in a desperate attempt to flee the inferno.
She wrote:
Guys I don’t know what to do. I’m stuck in the block. Panicking because people are jumping out the window and I can’t leave my house at all.
Thankfully, she made it to safety, informing her nearest and dearest that all was well.
When the fire initially broke out, passersby described hearing the frantic screams of those inside.
One tweeted:
People are still trapped on their windows screaming for their lives saying they can’t get out.
We can see how quick the fire spreads via the external panels. It’s unbearable hearing someone screaming for their lives at Grenfell Tower.
One shocking video even showed residents trying to flee by using bedsheets as rope.
A Met Police spokesman said:
Police were called at 1.16am on Wednesday, 14 June to reports of a large fire at a block of flats in the Lancaster West Estate, W11.
Officers, the London Fire Brigade and the London Ambulance Service are currently at the scene. An evacuation process is underway.
At this stage we are aware of two people being treated at the scene for smoke inhalation.
Cordons are in place and it is advised that the estate and surrounding area is avoided.
It is unclear how the fire started.
A nearby church is reportedly offering refuge to those made homeless by the blaze and an emergency number has been set up for anyone concerned for loved ones – 0800 0961 233.
