Current fire in Dagenham: Major damage reported, two people in hospital after apartment fire in East London

A Justice4Grenfell spokesperson said: “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the devastating fire in Dagenham. This horrific incident highlights the urgent need for safe accommodation for all.”

“The Government’s long delay in removing the dangerous cladding is putting lives and freedoms at risk and this is simply unacceptable.

“The process of removing the non-compliant cladding has taken far too long and has put local residents in vulnerable situations.

“We call for swift action to ensure that all buildings are secured without further delay so that tragedies like this do not happen again.”

Survivors of the Grenfell Tower tragedy have called on the Labour government to speed up the removal of unsafe cladding from residential buildings following the fire at an east London high-rise.

The Spectrum Building in Dagenham went up in flames on Monday morning. Non-compliant external cladding was reportedly being removed from the facade.

In 2017, 72 people died when Grenfell Tower in west London caught fire. It turned out that the building was clad in highly flammable cladding.

A spokesman said The Independent: “We are eagerly awaiting the news that all residents have been registered and are being adequately cared for by the responsible authorities.

“Although we do not have all the details, it appears that work was underway to remove non-compliant cladding and there were a number of fire safety issues in the building.

“This highlights the painfully slow progress of remediation efforts across the country and the lack of urgency regarding building safety overall, including the implementation of personal evacuation plans for disabled residents, which needs to be urgently addressed.”

Margaret Mullane, Labour MP for Dagenham and Rainham, said the number of injuries from the fire was “minimal”.

She tweeted: “Horrific scenes in Dagenham this morning as @LondonFire tackled the fire on Freshwater Road. Thanks to their quick response there were few injuries.”

“I will be visiting the rescue centre today to see what help and support I can offer to the residents and businesses who have lost everything.”

A search and rescue operation is currently underway for survivors after a fire broke out in the high-rise building in east London on Monday morning.

Up to four people were injured and treated on site, two residents were taken to hospital, the London Ambulance Service said.

The cause of the fire is unknown, but it is believed that work was being carried out in the building to remove non-compliant cladding.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper thanked firefighters and other emergency services for their “courage and rapid response” to the Dagenham fire.

She said: “My thoughts are with everyone affected by the major fire in Dagenham. I thank the London Fire Brigade and all emergency services on the scene for their bravery and quick response.”

Ms Cooper added that ministers would be kept updated on the incident.

A six-year-old girl staying with friends was terrified by the fire that raged in the building where she lived, her father said.

His father, Dinesh Raj, told the BBC the children were “calm now” but were initially “scared”. He said he received a call from his friend at around 3am telling him there was a fire in the building.

The father told the BBC that he rushed to the scene of the accident in his car. His friend's family grabbed the six-month-old baby and his daughter and got out when they smelled smoke.

Grenfell survivors and relatives have paid their last respects to the victims of a massive fire in an east London high-rise building.

Grenfell United said: “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the fire in Dagenham this morning. We hope that all residents are safe and are being properly cared for by the authorities.”

The campaign group is calling for criminal proceedings against those allegedly responsible for a fire in west London that killed 72 people.

Grenfell Tower was clad in non-compliant and highly flammable plastic cladding, which exacerbated the fire and made it difficult to extinguish.