Demonstrators have marched to Kensington Town Hall, and some have managed to enter the foyer, a BBC reporter at the scene reports.

The British Red Cross launched an appeal today to raise money to help people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower.

The charity has been asked by Kensington and Chelsea council to help co-ordinate the relief operation and will follow a similar model to the fund formed after the Manchester terrorist attack just a few weeks ago.

Offers of help and bundles of food and clothing have been arriving non-stop for people caught up in the fire.

Image source, PA

Image source, PA

Singer Lily Allen joined a small crowd gathered at Kensington and Chelsea Town Hall this afternoon.

She said: "The people at the site are not being given the opportunity to grieve.

“In the whole area there are still people clinging onto hope. And they’ll do that until someone from the council tells them to stop putting things into boxes [in volunteer centres] and to go home.

“I’m part of this community and I have been out and talked with them.”

She also expressed concern for children who had witnessed the fire, saying: "There's no support on the ground for them".

An electrical safety charity has advised people to check that they are not misusing electrical appliances, and to seek advice if they're concerned that a device might be dangerous.

Electrical Safety First has referred people to its website after rumours that a faulty fridge may have caused the Grenfell Tower blaze.

A spokesperson said: "While this remains unconfirmed, we understand that people might be worried about appliances in their home. We encourage anyone who is concerned about a product in their home to visit electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk, external for advice on product registration and safe use of household appliances.”

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

Image source, Getty Images

Hospital doctors are keeping some casualties from the Grenfell Tower fire unconscious for several days to allow them to recover from the effects of smoke inhalation.

Doctors are currently treating 24 casualties in four hospitals: 12 are in a critical condition.

All are said to be suffering from damage to the throat, lungs and airways caused by breathing in smoke.

The BBC understands that no-one is being treated for burns to the skin or body.

However, breathing in smoke can cause damaging internal burns and swelling to the throat, which may not be immediately obvious.

The most serious cases will need a general anaesthetic.

This means they can be kept well-hydrated using an intravenous drip and kept under close supervision while their airways heal.

The leading body for councils in England and Wales will conduct an urgent review of fire safety in high-rise buildings in the wake of the Grenfell Tower blaze.

Local Government Association chairman Lord Porter said: “Fire risk assessments and the construction of buildings are being reviewed and double checks are being made to ensure remedial work recommended under previous assessments have been carried out.

“Councils take the safety of residents extremely seriously. We need to know with certainty how this fire started and why it spread so quickly so that councils can start to take any action needed.

"The thoughts of the whole local government family remain with the victims and families affected by this devastating fire, the local community and the emergency services.”

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Dr Nigel De Noronha, an expert in social housing, says that previous governments haven't paid enough attention to social housing as it has been such a low priority.

Grenfell Tower had had an £8.6m refurbishment only last year.

Dr De Noronha told the BBC News Channel: "I don't think money was really the issue. Lots of money has been spent but it doesn't seem to have been spent very wisely."

Residents of a tower block refurbished by the same firm as Grenfell Tower have voiced concerns about the safety of their homes.

Rydon Construction fitted thermal external cladding to five tower blocks in the Chalcot Estate in Camden.

The company said its work met all building and fire regulations and was signed off by building inspectors.

Fire investigators have not yet identified the cause of the fire or why it engulfed the Grenfell Tower.

Image source, Google

Emergency workers inspect the roof and the inside of Grenfell Tower in North Kensington.

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Waewta Suparerksanon has told BBC Thai how she and four other members of her family escaped from the fire at Grenfell Tower.

The 62-year-old Thai woman had lived on the 10th floor of the building for 31 years.

Waewta was watching television at around 01:00 BST when she heard about the fire.

Her younger sister phoned the emergency services number and was told to remain in the flat.

“Luckily we didn’t believe [the phone operator] and got out quickly,” Waewta said. They escaped from the building at around 04:00 BST.

The Sun has denied reports one of its journalists pretended to be a Grenfell Tower patient's family member in order to gain an interview.

King's College Hospital has referred the paper to the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) after "an incident", which it would not comment on further.

The accusations, first reported on social media, were described as "untrue and malicious" by the paper.

A spokesperson said: "On arrival The Sun reporter and photographer made hospital staff aware that they were present and had been in touch with the contact.

"However we were informed the contact had changed his mind on the interview and The Sun promptly left the hospital."

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BBC Radio 4

A former employee of KCTMO, the management company who oversees Grenfell Tower's maintenance, has said "I can't say that I'm surprised something has happened somewhere in a borough in London."

Seraphima Kennedy, who worked for the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation between 2007 and early 2016, told Mark Mardell the organisation was "massively overstretched" and changes in policy were frequent.

She said the fact that there are sprinklers in hotels but not in high-rise council blocks "makes you ask questions about how the state values lives and which lives it values".

Sarah Lee
BBC London

Traumatised firefighters who "saw things they had never seen before" in the Grenfell Tower blaze are receiving counselling through the fire brigade.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Jane Philpott said crews had witnessed shocking scenes. One firefighter, identified as Terry, said he had seen "nothing like it" during his 27 years in the service.

Another, Ben Holehouse, 45, said he witnessed scenes of complete "devastation and horror."

The firefighters and London Fire Brigade said the operation was physically and mentally exhausting.

Mental health experts said a large majority of emergency workers experienced stress and other mental health problems.

Chris Mason
Political Correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has criticised what he's called "outrageous politicking by Labour" over "the terrible fire in London."

Writing on his Facebook page, he said: "I find it unbelievable that Labour are suggesting that this tragedy was somehow caused by fire service cuts."

A source close to Mr Johnson said the foreign secretary had been "shocked" by some of the comments he had heard.

He added: "As for the record, fires in London went down 50% in my mayoralty."

His full post can be read here., external