London: A fire transformed a high-rise apartment tower in West London into an inferno early Wednesday morning, sending at least at least 74 people to hospitals and raising fears that others might have been trapped inside. The Metropolitan Police confirmed that six people had died and warned that the figure would almost certainly rise.
"In my 29 years of being a firefighter, I have never, ever seen anything of this scale," said Dany Cotton, commissioner of the London Fire Brigade.
One local community leader is claiming that 'nobody who lived on the top three floors survived' - and that the actual number of dead could be 'more than 50', yet to be confirmed.
There are 'possibly hundreds missing' - although the exact number is understood to be hard to establish as dozens were rushed to hospital without names being noted.
At least one person was spotted falling from a window as the first fire engine arrived at around 1am - while another trapped woman was spotted holding her baby out of another window.
Others, dressed in their nightclothes, say they stepped over dead bodies in their bid to escape - while one man was seen jumping with a 'makeshift parachute'. The first pictures taken from inside the basement level - showing a dead body lying at the bottom of a stairwell - are only a hint of the true horror of the devastating blaze which ripped through the levels above.
A frantic mum threw her baby from a ninth floor window a hero bystander below while others screamed "save my children" as a fire ravaged their tower block home.
One eyewitness told how she heard people screaming "Save my children, save my children!" and throwing them out of the windows.
One witness said he saw a 'child on fire' jump from the 22nd floor as the blaze took hold.
Tim Downie, an actor and writer who lives close to the block, added: "The fire has spread to all the building. The whole building has been engulfed. It has gone."
One man, who saw a friend throw two people to safety - and people jump from windows - broke down in tears as he said simply: "We saw a lot. We saw a lot." A nurse who treated the injured at the scene said people were "spitting out black tar that had gone on their lungs".
Another eyewitness, Samira Lamrani, 38, who lives nearby, claims she saw people "throwing their kids out" of windows and heard people screaming: "Help me! Help me! Save my children! Save my children!"
"Around midnight the fire was only around the third floor and then, before you know it, the whole 23 floors of the building were all on fire and there were people screaming for help and throwing kids out," she added.
Another horrified eyewitness described the awful moment he saw a 'child on fire' jump from the 22nd floor of the burning building.
An eyewitness named Daniel told BBC Radio London said: "They were trapped. They couldn't come downstairs, especially from the top floor … people have been burned.
"I have seen it with my own eyes. And I have seen people jump."
Another resident, Hicham, told Sky News he saw a woman throw herself from the building from the 8th floor. He said: "She was calling for help. She hit the floor. All the people from all angles from everywhere, they were shouting for help.
"I think the fire brigade was telling them to stay in." The owner of Grenfell Tower placed its fire safety policy under review last year and ordered multiple changes to the way it handled fire risk in its properties.
The review of fire safety policy by the Kensington and Chelsea Tenants Management Organisation (KCTMO) was under way at the same time as residents in the Grenfell Action Group warned about "dangerous living conditions" in November and said: "It is a truly terrifying thought but the Grenfell Action Group firmly believe that only a catastrophic event will expose the ineptitude and incompetence of our landlord, the KCTMO."
Police have been spotted using riot shields to protect fire crew from falling debris as they battle reach those who are trapped - with people still being rescued 12 hours after the blaze started.