No alarm and escape was locked, say fire victims

Residents, including Philippa Rene (front centre), have spoken collectively and are demanding justice

Residents of a tower block in Dagenham, east London, which went up in flames earlier this week have said no fire alarm went off and the exit route was locked.

More than 80 people were evacuated from the tower block in the early hours of Monday, but there were no casualties.

The residents, speaking collectively, told the BBC: "Our building's fire alarm system failed to go off, denying us the critical warning we needed and the fire escape route, which should have been our lifeline, was padlocked shut."

Philippa Rene, speaking for the group, said the private building owner, Block Management, had failed "to attend the centre and address their residents". The BBC has contacted Block Management for comment.

Drone images show firefighters tackling the blaze on Monday

The group added the building also lacked sprinklers and "nobody knocked on our doors to alert us, except our neighbours who risked their lives to wake us up".

'Dealing with shock'

Omar Zid explained his wife had woken up and had smelled a fire in the middle of the night.

When they looked out of the window, they saw smoke coming up from the second floor.

"We both left everything behind and it's only now that you realise how scary it was," he said.

He added his wife was not "in a good shape as she is dealing with the shock".

The residents are now demanding answers. Mohammed M Miah said: "We don't know where to go, we are in limbo and it's so scary, I can't even put it into words sometimes."

In a statement, the residents said they needed immediate "rehousing and justice".

"What makes the tragedy even more heart-breaking is that it was entirely preventable," they alleged.

Investigators are trying to establish the cause, but the fire service said the building had "known" safety issues and the role played by the cladding would form part of the investigation.

"The multiple layers of management, from landlords to agencies have utterly failed to protect us," the residents claimed.

The incident comes just over seven years after the Grenfell Tower fire in the capital, which left 72 people dead.

'Won't rest until justice served'

Dozens of residents have been displaced as a result of the Dagenham fire and some of them have alleged to the BBC that the council is refusing to rehome them and they are "not allowed to access public funds".

Dagenham Council said it had "sourced emergency accommodation for displaced residents" and was "working with each household individually on next steps".

Wumi Adegoke, who lived in one of the flats, added the council told her on Thursday this was the last day the victims' help centre would be open.

"It's the only place we have to gather and we deserve to have this place to support us," she told the BBC in tears. "We are all so sad and traumatised."

Another resident said they needed "immediate support, including housing and financial assistance".

"We won’t rest until justice is served and no one else has to suffer as we have," the residents added.

The council added later on Thursday afternoon that the help centre had been extended and moved to Dagenham library.

It also said the displaced residents' emergency accommodation had been extended but did not specify an end date.