Butt condemns fire service cuts that will cause preventable deaths

Muhammed Butt's office has sent me the following statement. Please note that the 8 fatalities in Brent last year included the mother and five children who died in the Neasden house fire. Reports at the time said that the fire service was alerted at 00.50 and were fighting the fire 'around' 01.00 and it was under control by 02.50.   Firefighters from Willesden, West Hampstead, North Kensington and Park Royal fire stations attended.

Cllr Muhammed Butt, Leader of Brent Council, has spoken out angrily today against Coalition cuts to fire services in Brent. Cllr Butt’s comments came as it was revealed that the fire service missed its own target of attending the scene of a fire within 6 minutes in 41% of callouts in Brent. Cllr Butt is extremely concerned  that Brent had by far the highest number of fire fatalities in London during 2011/12.

Of 2,384 fire service callouts since January 2012, 988 (or 41%) missed the fire service’s own 6 minute response time target. David Cameron has said that the key issue for the fire service is how long it takes to attend an incident.

In 2011/12 there were 8 fire fatalities in Brent, by far the highest of any London Borough. The next highest was Southwark with 5 fatalities, and most the London Boroughs had only 1. During the same period there were a total of 47 fatalities across London.

Cllr Butt, Leader of Brent Council said,

“I have huge respect for our fire men and women and the extremely difficult job they do, and these cuts to fire services are an absolute disgrace. Cameron, Teather, Boris and co are acting with complete disregard for the lives of Brent residents. 

“They must scrap their plans to cut fire services in Brent even further immediately. Sarah Teather must stand firmly on the side of her residents against her Government on this issue. How can they give money to millionaires while their cuts are causing preventable deaths in our poorest communities?”

Barry Gardiner, Member of Parliament for Brent North said:

“The Mayor may have the power to do this but he has no right to put the lives of my constituents at risk in this way.”

A sad glorious Autumn day

A glorious early Autumn day: clear blue skies, warm sunshine, and six coffins of diminishing sizes on trestles against a verdant lawn. This was the sight that greeted mourners from Brent who made the long trip across London to Ilford for the funeral of the Kua family at the Garden of Peace Muslim Cemetery. The mourners included relatives and friends,  staff and pupils from Crest Academy and Braintcroft Primary School, the Director of Brent Children and Families Department, firefighters and the Borough Commander and other officers from Brent Police..

After prayers the burials took place. Mother and teenage daughters alternating with the younger children who were buried in a different part of the cemetery.  As we moved from one part of the cemetery to the other for each burial,  the enormity of what had happened was brought home against the background of prayer, handfuls of clay thudding on the wooden coffins, and the incongruous sound of a mechanical digger excavating yet another grave.

Bassam Kua, the father, arms wrapped in plaster and burn marks on his face, brave beyond anything I have seen before,  was supported by relatives and friends, as he moved from burial to burial. Hanin (14) and Basma (13) were buried close to their mother Muna.  As burial followed burial, each one feeling like yet another powerful blow, we came to that of little Amal, aged just 9, who had been remembered with love, joy and that easy familiarity children have, by her classmates on Monday.  She was buried near her brothers Mustufa aged 5 and Yehya aged two.

Speaking after Amal's grave had been filled in, the officiator reminded mourners that in Islam a child under 15 who died was seen as massoom (blameless) and would go straight to heaven. He reflected on the family's life in this country and the struggle for freedom in their native Palestine.

It was a calm and dignified occasion with everyone attending appearing to gain strength and solidarity not only from sharing the unbearable experience with each other, but from witnessing the courage and determination of Bassam Kua. One member of the family was missing and in everyone's thoughts. Nur, aged 16, remains in critical condition in hospital.

She has an entire community supporting her struggle.

London Fire Brigade launch schools safety campaign after Neasden fire

The London Fire Brigade have issued the following statement:


Fire investigators from the London Fire Brigade have today released information about what they believe to be the most likely cause of the worst house fire in the capital in over a decade. 

Six people died and two people were seriously injured in a blaze that started in the early hours of Saturday morning in a two-story semi-detached house on Sonia Gardens in Neasden. Fire investigators believe that a chest freezer, which was in the hallway at the bottom of the stairs, may have caused the fire. The make of the chest freezer is not known at this stage.  

Earlier this week, the London Fire Brigade confirmed that a BEKO fridge freezer was in the house. However, this is not the same type of appliance as the one which fire investigators believe may have caused the fire and it has not formed part of the fire investigation.

Following the incident, the London Fire Brigade will be launching a fire safety blitz across the capital. The Brigade’s schools team will begin a pilot programme to visit secondary schools in Brent, the borough in which the fire happened. It already visits primary schools across the capital.

The Brigade will also be writing to every headteacher in London with fire safety advice they can give to children in assemblies. It will offer every primary school in London the opportunity of a visit, with a focus on children aged 6-7 and 9-10. Interested teachers should check the schools section of the Brigade’s website. 
Tomorrow, fire chiefs will also be launching a fire safety campaign on Facebook, which it hopes will reach one million people. The ‘Share it to Save a Life’ campaign will encourage people to share one fire safety tip with their Facebook friends every day for a week. People should visit the London Fire Brigade’s Facebook page for more details.

Today, fire chiefs are urging people to take four simple steps to protect themselves from fire:
1)          Check your appliances – if you notice any strange noises or smells coming from electrical appliances call a repair person and never overload plug sockets.
2)          Get a smoke alarm – fit it and check it regularly. One in ten homes still doesn’t have a smoke alarm. (Department for Communities and Local Government)
3)          Plan your escape  – know how you would get out of your home in the event of a fire
4)          Get out, stay out – in the event of a fire, get out, stay out. Call the fire brigade and do not attempt to tackle the fire yourself.
Assistant Commissioner for the London Fire Brigade, Steve Turek, said:

“Fire investigators will continue to piece together the tragic events of Saturday morning but early indications are that the fire was caused by a chest freezer in the hallway of the house. Our deepest sympathies are with the family and friends of those who died. This tragic event should focus people’s minds on how they can make their home safer. Our fire safety blitz will help people to do that. We will continue to work tirelessly to make the homes of all Londoner’s safer.

“There are four simple pieces of advice we are giving people to help keep them safe. Check your electrical appliances and sockets - if you notice anything strange, call a repair person. Everyone should make sure they have a smoke alarm and check regularly that it works. People should think about how they would get out in the event of a fire starting in their home and if it does, they should get out and stay out. Call the fire brigade and do not attempt to tackle the fire your self.”

Neasden Fire Aftermath: we have schools and children to be proud of

Firefighters pay tribute to the Kua family

 I am Chair of Governors at the Neasden primary school attended by two of the children who died in the house fire at the weekend. I went in this morning to provide as much support as I was able and have returned humbled by the experience. The strength and sensitivity shown by the headteacher and staff as they struggled with their own emotions but put them aside to support the children was truly impressive.

The headteacher ran three assemblies for the different age groups and read out warm and vivid accounts of Amal aged 9 and Mustafa aged 7 provided by their teachers. The children were encouraged to share happy memories of their class mates and were given time to reflect or pray during the assembly. Throughout staff were on hand to give out tissues and provide physical reassurance with strokes and pats on the shoulder for sobbing children. After the assembly the children were given time to talk in class. Time and space was set aside for children to pray later in the morning if they wished. Tributes were paid to the London Fire Brigade, ambulance staff, and the doctors and nurses attending the family's father and surviving older sister.

During the assembly and in class children were very caring and supportive of each other. Some children chose to write, draw pictures or send messages to Amal and Mustafa and others were keen to discuss other, more permanent, ways of remembering the whole family. The older children had attended the school before moving on to Crest Academy.

Bringing to life the concept of 'Brent's Community of Schools' messages of support, sympathy and solidarity came from other Brent schools and from officers in the local authority along with sound practical advice.

In a poignant moment two Year 5 girls knocked at the headteacher's office door while we were meeting after the assemblies. They had noticed how upset the head had been in the assembly and said, "We've come to see if you are okay, Miss."

Out of tragedy is born hope. We have schools and children to be proud of.

Various rumours are circulating locally about the cause of the fire including stories about a faulty fridge. The London Fire Brigade, who observed a minute's silence for the family on Saturday at an event at the Excel Centre, have issued the following statement:

A painstaking investigation into the cause of a fire in Neasden, which killed six people and seriously injured two others, in the early hours of Saturday morning is still ongoing. Fire investigators are leaving no stone unturned in their efforts to establish the cause of the fire.

At this stage, the London Fire Brigade is able to confirm that a BEKO fridge freezer was at the scene of the fire. However, this is not forming part of the fire investigation at this time.

Six fire engines and around 30 firefighters were called to the fire on Sonia Gardens in Neasden, London, NW10, in the early hours of Saturday 24 September. The ground floor and first floor of the two storey semi detached house was badly damaged by the fire.

A woman aged 41 and five children – three girls aged 14, 13 and 9 and two boys aged 5 and 2 died. Two further people, a man aged 51 and a girl aged 16, escaped from the house before firefighters arrived at the scene, both were injured and were taken to hospital by ambulance.

Fire crews were at the scene within minutes of the Brigade being called about the fire - the first fire engine was there within four minutes and the second was there within seven minutes. Metropolitan Police and London Ambulance Service crews were also at the scene.

The Metropolitan Police has deemed the cause of the fire to be non-suspicious but investigations continue to find out how the fire started.

The investigation findings will be updated on the London Fire Brigade website HERE