Seventy Residents Flee Fire in South Acton Tower Block

Blaze took hold in Harlech Tower famous for being in Only Fools and Horses

Picture: London Fire Brigade

A fire broke out in a South Acton tower block this Wednesday evening (2 August) with over 70 residents needing to flee the building.

Four fire engines and around 20 firefighters and officers were called to the fire at Harlech Tower at 7.54pm on Park Road East. The fire was out just over an hour later. Harlech Tower is best known for being the film location of Nelson Mandela Tower in Only Fools and Horses the Peckham home of Del Boy and Rodney.

Half of a four-roomed flat on the sixth floor in the block of flats was damaged. Firefighters led four people to safety via an internal staircase and around 70 people had already left the building before the Brigade arrived. One man suffering from smoke inhalation was treated at the scene by paramedics.

Station Manager Gareth Cook who was at the scene said, “It is incidents like this which show how important it is to know what to do in the event of a fire, especially if you live in a flat. If there is a fire in another part of your building while you are inside your purpose-built flat or maisonette, and you're not affected by the fire, stay put and call 999.

“There is lots of helpful advice on our website which explains what to do in the event of a fire. I would also urge everyone to fit smoke alarms in their homes and test them regularly.”

Fire crews from Acton, Chiswick, Ealing and Hammersmith fire stations attended.

Residents were concerned that another tragedy on the scale of Grenfell Tower had taken place when they heard the fire engines during the evening but local police were quick to reassure on Twitter that it was now normal operating practice for more engines to attend a blaze at a tower block even if it was relatively minor.

The Fire Brigade say that the cause of the fire was accidental.

August 3, 2017