Six fire engines and around 40 firefighters attended a fire at a block of flats on Sheenewood in Sydenham.
A first-floor flat in a three-storey residential block was destroyed by fire. Two adults left the flat before firefighters arrived. One child wearing a fire escape hood was rescued from another flat in the building by firefighters via a 13.5 metre ladder. A further two adults and one child were also provided with fire escape hoods and rescued from the building by firefighters via an internal staircase. A further two adults who left the building before firefighters arrived. In total. eight people were taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service as a precaution to be treated for minor smoke inholation.
Control Officers gave vital Fire Survival Guidance on how to stay safe to residents in one of the flats before firefighters arrived.
London firefighters were among the first in the UK to carry fire escape hoods when they were introduced in 2018 as part of improvements following the Grenfell Tower fire. The hoods provide members of the public with up to 15 minutes protection from four of the main fire gases (carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen chloride and acrolein) and can be worn by conscious or unconscious people. If more than 15 minutes protection is required then another hood can be given to each wearer. They do not provide oxygen but temporarily filter toxic smoke to make breathing easier.
The Brigade received the first of 15 calls at 0046 and Control Officers mobilised crews from Forest Hill, Beckenham, Lewisham, Woodside, Peckham and West Norwood fire stations to the scene. A 32-metre turntable ladder from Greenwich Fire Station also attended and was used as an observation tower, providing the Incident Commander with a greater situational awareness of the incident. The fire was brought under control by 0205.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.