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Serious damage at flats |
Hospital for blaze victims
FOUR people were hospitalised and dozens forced to evacuate their homes when a block of flats near Edgware Road caught fire.
The blaze on Friday broke out at 6am in an 8th-floor flat on the Park West estate. Most residents were still in bed.
Firefighters from Paddington scaled the block to pull three men and a woman to safety. All four were taken to St Mary’s Hospital and were released later the same day.
A man who escaped unharmed from a 5th-floor flat said: “I was sleeping when I heard people begin to scream. I then saw that smoke was coming into our flat. I have a wife and three children so I was very frightened. Everyone from the building was evacuated.”
In order to stop the blaze spreading, firefighters flooded the building’s 7th floor with water. A firefighter who observed the operation said this was a necessary precaution as the flats had weak walls and were fitted with cheap plastic piping which had already exploded.
Mohamed Nagar, 55, a leaseholder of one of the 7th-floor flats, said: “The whole flat has water and smoke damage. Insurance will pay but, of course, I was very worried when I heard the news.”
Freshwater Property Management, who run Park West estate, were unavailable for comment.
The fire cause is unknown. |
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