London, June 16 (RHC)-- In London, outrage over the deadly fire at a 24-story public housing building earlier this week is mounting, as the death toll continues to rise.
The fire at the 24-story Grenfell Tower apartment building in West London killed at least 30 residents. As many as 70 residents are still missing, meaning the death toll could eventually top 100.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has proposed "requisitioning" vacant luxury apartment buildings in order to house those who have been made homeless by the massive fire. Residents are demanding answers about why their safety concerns were routinely ignored ahead of the deadly blaze. The building underwent a recent renovation that residents say was dangerously shoddy.
The residents, who are mostly low-income, say the renovation was largely aimed at making aesthetic improvements to the exterior of the building in order to make it blend in with the new luxury high-rises in the rapidly gentrifying West London neighborhood. New revelations suggest that the shiny exterior paneling installed during the renovation was highly flammable and is responsible for accelerating the fire.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has ordered a full public investigation into the fire.