Former Chiswick Fire Officer Gets Backing for Grenfell Tower Response

Michael Dowden was initially the incident commander at the scene

A fire officer formerly based at Chiswick Fire station, who initially took charge of the response to the incident, has faced a tough round of questions from the Grenfell Tower inquiry about his actions on the night.

Michael Dowden was the London Fire Brigade watch manager at the North Kensington fire station on the night of the tragedy. He was giving evidence to the inquiry this week and was asked to explain the reasons that it was not until two hours after the fire that the order was given to evacuate the building. The fire got out of control as the external cladding caught fire, though the fire service was unaware at that time of the reason behind the blaze becoming so ferocious. Mr. Dowden said that by the time he had called out fifteen fire engines, he felt 'helpless'. The questioning had to be paused after Mr Dowden was overcome by emotion after mobile phone footage of events was shown to the inquiry.

Any suggestion that Mr Dowden should take any responsibility for the outcome that night have been fiercely rejected by his union and family and friends. A Twitter hashtag called #IAmMichaelDowden, has been set up in which a large number of people, including his sister Jane, have sent messages of support.

Mr Dowden told the inquiry, "I've never operated at that level before. I was making decisions to the best of my ability with all good intentions to try to successfully resolve that incident.

"As an incident commander, the challenge we faced, an almost impossible situation trying to evacuate that building at that time with the resources in attendance," Mr Dowden told the hearing. "It is something I still search for today."

Mr. Dowden has been a firefighter with the London Fire Brigade (LFB) for the past fourteen years and was the first fire brigade incident commander sent to the tower on the night of the fire in June 2017.

In March this year he was presented with a commendation for bravery during the Parsons Green terror attack where, as a passenger on the train, he had stayed on the scene helping to evacuate people from the scene. He also received a letter last year from the Head of the Fire Service congratulating him and some colleagues for actions during a house fire in 2016.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has issued a statement supporting Mr. Dowden. It says, “Mike Dowden is not in any way a ‘Fire Chief’ as has been reported in the media in recent days. In fire service structures, he is a junior officer. He is not a middle manager and he is not a strategic or principal manager. On the night of the fire he was originally in charge of two fire engines at one fire station.

“Let’s remember that Mike Dowden did not apply flammable cladding to Grenfell Tower. Nor did he make the other alterations which destroyed the fire safety within the building. Nor did he start the fire. He was simply on duty when the worst fire since World War Two broke out. Like all firefighters that night, he was placed in an impossible situation. He did what they all did; he tried his utmost to save lives."

The Inquiry continues.

July 1, 2018