A fire report commissioned to establish why Camberwell council residents unknowingly lived in a block riddled with safety defects, even after the Lakanal House fire tragedy, has failed to answer that very question.
In 2009, a blaze tore through Lakanal House, Sceaux Gardens, Camberwell, claiming the lives of six people.
Astonishingly, sister block Marie Curie House was not checked for fire safety problems until 2020, and the report was meant to establish why it took so long.
Councillor Stephanie Cryan, cabinet member for council homes and homelessness, said: “We did commission an independent report, and disappointingly, it did not go far enough to address the key questions that we and residents want answers to. This is not good enough, and we will be pursuing the full, required report until it is done properly.
“We remain very keen to see answers as to why all the required safety works to Marie Curie, which we are currently progressing, were not addressed at the same time as the Lakanal building.
“I understand it will be frustrating for residents to wait a little longer, but we have to get it right. I appreciate everyone’s patience while we work through that process and it will be published, in public, once we have answers.”
Investigations into Marie Curie House’s fire safety defects were only commissioned, a decade after the Lakanal House fire, because a resident complained that smoke was moving between flats.
Subsequent assessments revealed there were numerous defects, including gaps between properties, ageing pipes, and issues with risers and bathroom ducts.
The council has been rehousing residents so they can complete fire safety improvements on the block but, due to the huge waiting list, only half of them have found new homes.