GRENFELL TOWER – FROM BAD TO WORSE

An end may finally be in sight to the mysterious and distressing power surges that have bedevilled Grenfell Tower residents throughout the past month. However, decisive action was only taken yesterday after highly distressed residents descended en masse on the estate office to demand action. They had woken to find smoke issuing from various electrical appliances in their homes, including the light fixtures, and descended in panic to the estate office to demand help and assistance.  Emergency electricians who attended later in the day were finally, it seems, able to identify the source of the problem. An emergency temporary electrical by-pass supply has been provided and the necessary follow–up works will be carried out in the near future.

It is very clear at this stage that the electrical supply to Grenfell Tower has been in a very dangerous condition for several weeks. It is equally clear that the authorities had been repeatedly warned of this  but had failed to react with sufficient urgency and had failed to take adequate remedial measures.

As evidence of this we present the extract below from an email sent on 13th May by Shah Ahmed,  Chair of the Grenfell Tower Leaseholders Association, to Robert Black at TMO and various RBKC councillors and TMO officers:

“Continuous Power Surges in Grenfell Tower

There have been two weeks of power surges in the building, most notably in the early hours of the morning and throughout the evening and night time. Electronic apparatus are seriously affected by these surges. Computers are turned on and off, lights continually flicker becoming very dim and extremely bright in the space of a few seconds.

On 11th May 2013 at 9:05pm we had numerous power surges in the space of a minute, and in that process my computer and monitor literally exploded with smoke seeping out from the back and the smell of burnt electronics filled our entire computer. My monitor also fused at the same time. When I called the TMO out of hours service the standard textbook response was given to us that I was the first one to report such a problem and I was made to feel like a fool reporting such an issue, which resulted in years of data being lost forever.

Please note if the power surges continue at Grenfell Tower, it would be very dangerous and costly because it is interfering with electric and electronic items in the household, including the telephone line, television, fridge, washing machine, computer etc”.

A NUMBER OF THINGS NEED TO HAPPEN NOW:

• Grenfell Tower residents are demanding an emergency meeting with RBKC and TMO officers to fully explain what went wrong with the electrical supply, and why the TMO failed to respond with appropriate urgency. This meeting should be arranged as a matter of urgency.

• Officers attending the meeting should be prepared to explain why electrical engineers who ordered the planned power cut in Grenfell Tower between 08:30-17:30 on Saturday 18th May failed to identify and rectify a serious and dangerous fault in the electrical supply at that time.

• A single staircase with no natural light is the only emergency exit route from Grenfell Tower. The emergency lighting system in that stairwell should be thoroughly checked to ensure that neither the system itself, nor any of the individual battery packs, has been damaged by the power surges of recent weeks. If there is damage it should be immediately repaired as a matter of urgency.

• A number of electrical appliances belonging to Grenfell Tower residents were damaged or destroyed by power surges in recent weeks, although the amount off such damage and the number of victims is not yet known. On the face of it either the TMO or its electrical contractors would appear to be liable, but so far the TMO has denied any liability. Liability for this damage must be ascertained as soon as possible and all residents whose property was damaged should be fully compensated, including those whose refrigerated food was spoilt during the planned power cut on 18th May.

RBKC councillors please take careful note of the above. We feel very strongly that there needs to be much closer scrutiny by TMO Technical Services Officers of the performance of contractors, particularly those supplying essential and emergency services, and much closer scrutiny by RBKC scrutiny committees of the TMO and its service delivery arrangements and monitoring.

STOP PRESS – BREAKING NEWS

Thursday 30th May 9.13am

Many residents in Grenfell Tower are extremely shocked and angry about what has happened and many of the people descending on the Estate Office yesterday morning were distressed and close to tears. It is a fact that many households in Grenfell Tower have now lost the majority of their electrical appliances (washing machines, computers, televisions, etc) and very few (if any) of these residents have any household insurance.

We want to know why the problem of the power surge was not taken seriously when it was first reported and why, as a result of this dangerous and negligent behaviour, many residents have had their health and safety placed at extreme risk, in addition to losing electrical appliances in their properties?

MORE TROUBLE AT GRENFELL TOWER

What on earth is going on at Grenfell Tower? We don’t know – and nor it seems does the TMO who are responsible for managing Grenfell Tower. What  we do know is that there have been frequent and continuing power surges – sometimes accompanied by loss of water supply – that have caused great nuisance and distress to many residents and have destroyed a number of electronic appliances – computers in particular. As usual the TMO has been slow to respond, although it appears now to be doing so. So far they are also denying any liability for damage done to residents electrical appliances. We reproduce below the text of an email from the Vice Chair of the Grenfell Leaseholders Association to Councillor Judith Blakeman dated 28 May 2013:

“Just to update you and for your prompt action, during the weekend and particularly on Monday we had severe power surges throughout the night and they have been continuing right through the morning.

For us it does not matter who is responsible, but one thing is for sure we are losing our electronic appliances very fast due to the power surges. It is our obligation as residents to refer back to the TMO/EMB who should follow their obligation. Protecting resident’s interest should be the utmost priority for the TMO/EMB/KALC/COUNCIL/POWER SUPPLIER. Passing on the responsibility when residents’ welfare is at stake is wholly unacceptable. It has already created frustration and unhappy residents.

The problem is becoming months old and TMO and KALC (Leadbitter) has come up with two explanations in layman terms, but we do not find this explanation credible.  The explanation given by the Director of Asset and Management and Regeneration Mr Peter Maddison to our Local Councilor Judith Blakeman dated 24th May 2013 was,

”There are lots of theories about the possible cause of this problem, but we are lacking in hard facts. It is possible that the power surges are tripping out the water pumps – leading to the intermittent water supply. We are trying to validate this and identify an appropriate solution.

To date 7 residents have reported specific problems, apparently caused by power surges.-

We refute this assertion by Mr. Peter Maddison and it’s not true and we are sure that most of the resident are affected by this power surges.

We can report that Leadbitter is not at this time carrying out any works which involve high voltage electricity. We would also say, that surges of this nature, could only come through the transformer located in the tower basement, from the Grid. We have suggested that the TMO contact DNO (UKPN) for further investigation.
We have advised the TMO of this as the question had come up in a meeting with them.”

Cllr. Judith Blakeman informed us dated 24th May 2013:

“ I think Ms. Johnson was suggesting that you should contact the insurers for your household contents in the first instance until such time as we have more information.”

The explanation given by the Director of Housing Ms Laura Johnson dated 23rd May 2013:

“I have also asked Leadbitters if these surges can be explained at all by the development (although I think this is very unlikely as they do not access the same power source as Grenfell Tower). My initial thoughts are that this is a problem with the power supplier rather than anything to do with the TMO or KALC but I and the TMO will look into it”.

Leaflet dated 24th May 2013 from Siobhan Rumble:

“In addition metering equipment has been installed on site, which will provide us with details of any further surges to Grenfell tower. This information will enable us to indentify the cause of these issues and agree necessary works.”

The inspection carried out by the TMO contractor RGE in individual flats came out normal. Could you please also confirm that the TMO/EMB has identified the cause of the further power surges since they have installed the metering equipment. Residents are continuing to lose their appliances; this is a very serious matter. We are quite shocked and surprised that the TMO/EMB/Leadbitter/Power suppliers are taking so long to fix the problems while working on the KALC is ongoing with no problem in the world. It is extremely frustrating. What do they take us for? We wait to hear from you immediately.”

Best Wishes,

Tunde Awoderu
Vice Chairman
On behalf of Grenfell Tower Leaseholder’s Association and Residents of Grenfell Tower

GIZ A JOB

Way back in December 2011 when the funding for the KALC Project was approved by the RBKC Cabinet, the then Leader of the Council, Sir Merrick Cockell, made a big song and dance about how the Academy and Leisure Centre project would bring much needed jobs for the local community.

According to the minutes of the Cabinet meeting at which the KALC budget was agreed:

“The Chairman stated that given the total capital cost of £63.5 million, he would like to see local people given priority employment either through the procurement scheme or by way of employment within the academy and leisure centre, providing that they were sufficiently qualified.  He referred to the work to be done on providing the required training and the recent precedence for giving local people priority in Council schemes. Councillor Feilding-Mellen referred to recent European Social Fund money which had been secured to assist people into employment and its recent use in the Earls’ Court area”

(NB the Chairman was, of course, Merrick Cockell, who was then Leader of the Council)

The employment of local people by the contractor, Leadbitters, was further discussed at various Resident Forums and our community was informed that jobs and apprenticeships would be made available as a priority to those experiencing unemployment in the Notting Barns area. Sadly, it appears that none of these promises (just like our promised Right of Way through the KALC site) have been honoured.

Despite the fact that work has been underway on the KALC site for over six months not a single worker has been employed from the W11 area. This is despite the fact that various individuals have repeatedly made their availability for work known to the powers that be at Leadbitters for some considerable time.

It’s time to start asking those in power why not one person from our community has been found employment on the KALC site, and when and how this unacceptable situation will be resolved.

We invited Liz Jeffs at Leadbitters to comment. She said:

“It is very early days yet, but Leadbitters are working, in collaboration with RBKC, on a training and recruitment plan for the duration of the project.”

We’ve all heard this ‘early days’ mantra before – and it never meant anything positive or useful in any previous context. As for the rest of it, we will just have to see. Perhaps we should politely ask to see the detail of this so-called training and recruitment plan?

SAME OLD, SAME OLD.

AN OPEN LETTER – CHESTERTON SQUARE & BROADWOOD TERRACE

An Open Letter:

At Chesterton Square and Broadwood Terrace, ‘People count, Homes are precious, Community is essential’.

I have been talking to many people on Chesterton Square and Broadwood Terrace about ‘the review’ that is being undertaken. The announcement of it has caused, quite simply, a great deal of ‘alarm and distress’.

You emphasise that no decision has been made – apart from ‘to hold a review’. However in today’s economic climate you would hardly be spending money on a review and then doing nothing with it!

I would be disingenuous if I said that I have no concerns about my own situation. I am living in Chesterton Square because I lost my home and a business in the early nineties. Having experienced the loss of a home, I know the impact it can have. It is not just the loss of the home itself, but the loss of friends, neighbours and a community. The damage it can cause should never be underestimated. I had hoped never to move again!

And that is why, I am sticking my head ‘above the parapet’ and declaring my intention to fight for the communities of Chesterton Square and Broadwood Terrace – and for everyone in those communities – no divide and rule here!!!

The Warwick Road is already dominated by major developments, both existing and prospective – from Kensington High Street down to Earl’s Court. The thought of yet another major development just across the road from them is a horrific prospect. But it is the sheer destruction of ‘community’ that is the most serious aspect of this.
The wealthy overseas investors who tend to acquire properties in the ‘new developments’ do not seem to understand ‘community’ – or care about it.  We know, we understand its importance and care.

For reassurance, I would appreciate confirmation that the three options outlined in the letter of 18 March are not the only options that would be considered? This is a time for creative thinking and recognition of the importance of people and community.

Let me bring Chesterton Square and Broadwood Terrace to life for you. Either side of me are very elderly people – a 100 plus years old man with his wife in her nineties in one household. And in another home, a lady on her own in her eighties who, after a fall near the rubbish chute recently, is too nervous to go there, and so neighbours help her.  The impact of a move on those individuals would almost certainly be catastrophic.

There are people who own their homes. They are settled in the community. Some of them have children, who are happy in local schools and also have friends here. In many cases the leaseholders have spent a considerable amount of money on their homes – and gardens as well in some cases, providing pleasure to all who live here.

They have had some very high ‘maintenance charges’ imposed on them in recent years. And, there is still resentment over the way these charges were arrived at and imposed. The idea that market rate plus ten per cent might be fair recompense to them is ludicrous. It would not allow them to buy a similar size property in this area. It is the welfare of their children that is paramount. And, children need schools that suit them and communities too.

Uncertainty is most stressful and I have seen the impact that your letter has had on numerous tenants here. Whilst helpful, ‘the visits’ suggested a sense of urgency – thus adding to the ‘alarm and distress’.

The owners of properties that have them rented out are able, with the value of the properties as they ‘have been’, to let them, for example, to students at Imperial College. They are a welcome addition to the community here. The properties are close to their college enabling them to live and be educated in Kensington and Chelsea.

Let there be no misunderstandings. This is a vital matter to and for us all. It would be an excellent way for the Council to prove it values people, cares about its communities and understands the impact that just the ‘notice of holding a review’ has had already. Isolation and loneliness are two of our greatest challenges today. Demolition of homes, splintering a community and yet another major development would exacerbate these problems further.

We understand the Council’s need to seek a return on one of its assets, but with creative thinking and planning, there is no reason why the needs of the people could not be accommodated, alongside a benefit and a return to the Council obtained from the partial development of the site.

It is not a good image for the Royal Borough, to be seen to seek profit before the needs of its people.

I look forward to hearing from you.

With regards

Annie Redmile
80 Chesterton Square
Pembroke Road
London W8 6PJ
Tel: 020 7373 2605
Mobile: 07973 907203
Email: annie.redmile@gmail.com

The above is the text of a letter addressed initially to senior politicians and officials of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in early May 2013, and reproduced here by kind permission of the author. We fully support her appeal for the protection and nurture of diverse communities thoughout the Royal Borough, in the face of the multiple threats posed by heartless and ill-considered development, and particularly by large-scale ‘regeneration’, which we consider to be an alias for, and an attempt to justify, the ‘social cleansing’ of working class communities.  In our view we need to work together to form strong alliances and a broad front against these multiple threats to our communities.

WHATEVER HAPPENED……AND OTHER STORIES

The Grenfell Action Group has used the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to request access to the Council/TMO minutes that we hope will tell us why the Grenfell Tower refurbishment project has not yet progressed. This follows our recent discovery that the Major Planning Development Committee scheduled for 21st May has once again been cancelled.

The Grenfell Tower planning application was first scheduled for decision in December 2012 and has since been postponed no less than six times. Little explanation has been offered for these delays, and none that is remotely credible. Councillor Coleridge continues to insist that the Council fully intends to deliver this project as promised, but local residents are not at all reassured by his words, and do not believe the lame excuses offered for the interminable delays.

SOMETHING IS WRONG HERE AND THERE’S A BAD STINK ABOUT IT.

We will be keeping our readers updated on any developments on this and other issues, and as soon as the requested documents are made available to us by the TMO/Council we will publish relevant extracts on the blog.

In the meantime, we have had a meeting, accompanied by representatives of the Lancaster West Residents Association and the Grenfell Tower Leaseholders Association, with our MP, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, to raise concerns about the delays to the Grenfell Tower project and other matters concerning Lancaster West Estate. Sir Malcolm has agreed to contact Kensington and Chelsea Council on our behalf and raise the following issues:

• Ongoing concerns with regards the loss of our Rights of Way across the Kensington Academy and Leisure Centre (KALC) site.

• Lack of employment opportunities for local people on KALC

• The delays to the Grenfell Tower refurbishment project

• General concerns with regards the “managed decline” of Lancaster West Estate
  

• The Council’s intention to “socially cleanse” North Kensington and other vulnerable and poor communities in the Royal Borough.

As soon as we have a response from Sir Malcolm, we will also publish this on the blog.

Meanwhile, we wish to express our solidarity with Annie Redmile and the residents of Chesterton Square and Broadwood Terrace (situated above the Council Offices in Pembroke Road) in their up-coming battle against the Council’s plans to “socially cleanse” their housing estate (ie “regenerate”) and destroy their homes and community. You can read their story here, courtesy of the Hornet’s Nest website:

http://fromthehornetsnest.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/people-count-homes-are-precious.html

UNITED WE MUST STAND AGAINST EVIL TORY PLANS FOR THE “SOCIAL CLEANSING” OF THE ROTTEN BOROUGH!

STOP PRESS – BREAKING NEWS

There have been new developments regarding the Grenfell Tower planning application. It appears that residents of Grenfell Tower last night received a surprise hand-delivered update on the current position.

It would appear that the second planning application has now also been withdrawn and a third application will be submitted during the Summer, followed by another round of co-called public consultation.

One of the major implications of these further delays is that even if this new application were to finally be approved at some stage, works on site could not commence until sometime in 2014

Our advice at this stage – Dont held your breath.

WE WILL, OF COURSE, REPORT MORE FULLY ON THESE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS WHEN WE HAVE HAD TIME TO FIND OUT WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON.

PAGET–BROWN’S RESPONSE

Our recent open letter to the new leader elect of the Council was, of course, emailed to him before we published it on our blog. It received the following very positive response from Councillor Paget-Brown:

Thank you so much for your message of congratulation. I do appreciate it and am greatly looking forward to becoming Leader on 22nd May at the Annual Meeting of the Council. I didn’t actually post my manifesto – it was posted for me – but subsequently a number of residents asked if they could have a copy and I sent this out removing only a small section about internal matters which I didn’t think would be of relevance to anyone other than the Councillors.

Once I have “bedded in” a bit I will be very happy to visit you and to discuss the problems you have raised. I know too that my colleague, Cllr Tim Coleridge, is in regular contact with you and other residents of Lancaster West.

Regards…….Nick Paget-Brown

Now we can only wait and hope that his actions as leader will match the promise implicit in his warm words.