Death Toll in London Tower Block Fire Rises to 79

Death Toll in London Tower Block Fire Rises to 79
A huge fire engulfs the Grenfell Tower in West London on June 14, 2017. DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images
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LONDON—The death toll in the fire that ravaged a London tower block last week has risen to 79, police said on Monday, and the government said it was working to get a public inquiry into the disaster up and running promptly.

Fire broke out in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower, a social housing block in west London, in the early hours of June 14 and spread with terrifying speed, tearing through the building with residents trapped inside.

While emergency services have been widely praised for their handling of the disaster, the government has been criticized for a slow and inadequate response, with Prime Minister Theresa May facing public anger for failing to meet residents during her first visit to the site.

“Sadly today, as of 8 o'clock this morning, the number has increased. I believe there are 79 people that are either dead, or missing, and sadly I have to presume are dead,” Metropolitan Police Commander Stuart Cundy told reporters.

He said five of the dead had been formally identified, and it would be a slow and painstaking task to identify the others because of the intensity of the fire. Authorities may never be able to identify some of the victims, he said.

Members of the emergency services attend a minute's silence for the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire near the site of the blaze in North Kensington, London, Britain on June 19, 2017. (REUTERS/Marko Djurica)
Members of the emergency services attend a minute's silence for the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire near the site of the blaze in North Kensington, London, Britain on June 19, 2017. REUTERS/Marko Djurica