A huge fire has been raging for more than six hours at a block of flats in Deptford, southeast London.
Some 25 fire engines and 120 firefighters have rushed to the scene on Creek Road and continue to struggle to put it out.
Around 13 people escaped the building before crews arrived, the London Fire Brigade (LFB) said in a statement.
One resident claimed the fire alarm did not even go off in the affected flats.
‘I was home when it started – the fire alarm didn’t even go off for us,’ they told MyLondon. ‘We didn’t realise until the sirens arrived.’
Footage shared on social media shows plumes of grey smoke rising from the roof of the apartment block.
Catherine Woodhouse, who lives opposite, tweeted: ‘Over three hours since I saw it ignite and called the fire brigade. Parts of the walls now completely destroyed. Multiple flats on fire.’
She later wrote: ‘Firefighters now on the roof hacking with claw axes at the roof surface.
‘The entrance to the balcony area which opens from communal stairwell has now caved in. Firefighters in oxygen tanks completely encased in smoke plumes.
‘Residents were told fire brigade expect it would burn for six-12 hours.’
Ms Woodhouse also told the Mirror that one of the flats had ‘wooden decking and bamboo panelling’, which was banned by the government in 2019.
According to the resident, it was electrical cables on the balcony that caught fire.
There have been no reports of any injuries. People are being urged to stay away from the area and police have also closed the road.
The cause of the fire is not yet known but crews were called just after 1pm.
Station commander Ian Smith, who is at the scene said: ‘This is an intense fire located in the roof of the building and fire crews are working hard in challenging conditions.
‘We’ve increased the number of fire engines because of the need for more firefighters in breathing apparatus.
‘There is a lot of smoke from the incident and we’d ask local residents to close their doors and windows.’
The National Police Air Service (NPAS) has also been assisting the brigade.
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