Five people taken to hospital after fire at block of flats in Woolwich

Five people were rushed to hospital after a huge fire in a block of flats left plumes of smoke billowing across south-east London.

Around 100 residents were evacuated from the tower after the blaze broke out in a 10th-floor flat in Rymill Street, North Woolwich, at 10.30pm on Thursday.

One local told The Independent: “Thankfully there was no cladding. It was actually contained very quickly but it was still very worrying to see the flames outside the building at the mid-point of the tower.

“I live close to the main road towards the site, and it was the scale of the 999 response that alerted me to something going on and then I started smelling smoke. I went to the window and then saw the smoke coming from one of the tower blocks.

“There was a steady stream of responders heading to the site and within the first 30 minutes the flames had disappeared.

“I’m only about a half mile away but the smell was quite noticeable as the heavy wind was blowing towards me.”

Fitor Dauti, 48, watched from his window as the flames ripped through the flat just metres away from his home.

He told The Evening Standard: “I could see the flames. We had to close all the windows and doors.

“There were people coming out of the building for around 10 minutes. I was scared and panicked. There were people everywhere, even in my front garden.”

A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: “Ten fire engines and around 70 firefighters tackled a flat fire on Rymill Street in North Woolwich last night.

“Most of a three-roomed flat on the 10th floor was damaged by fire. Firefighters led four people to safety, whilst others remained in their unaffected flats.

“Five people were taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service crews. Around 100 residents were taken to a local rest centre.

“The Brigade’s 999 Control Officers took almost 30 calls to the blaze.

“The Brigade was called at 2232 and the fire was under control by 2350. Fire crews from Plaistow, Barking, East Ham, Poplar and surrounding fire stations attended the scene.

“The cause of the fire is under investigation.”

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We sent resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, paramedics in fast response cars, members of our Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) and an incident response officer.”

“The first of our crews arrived at the scene in five minutes.

“We treated 10 patients at the scene, before taking five to hospital.”