Have just seen a report on BBC news, via Buzzfeed, that Ealing Council will be coordinating the rescue work at Grenfell. Anyone know if this is true?
Nina Battleday ● 3237d8 Comments
Talk about kicking the ball in the long grass or wot?It may help to organise the confusion and erroneous facts about charitable help, and residents getting what they need, but I've only heard about this via this forum today!
John Pollastrini ● 3231d
It is my understanding that this goes beyond the resilience response. Ealing offered to coordinate the response once it became clear K&C were struggling and their officers have taken over specific responsibilities at the respite centre.
Sarah Woolmer ● 3234d
Buzzfeed article says:"London local government has a resilience response that can be invoked when a major London incident like the Grenfell fire happens.Yet the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea invoked this only on the afternoon of Friday 16 June – almost three days after the incident."
Paul Webster ● 3234d
So to portray this move as Ealing Council effectively taking over because the people at RBK&C were not up to the job is inaccurate?
Andy Jones ● 3234d
I think it is this organisation - been in place since early 2000shttps://www.london.gov.uk/about-us/organisations-we-work/london-prepared/london-resilience-forumResponsibilities of the forumLocal Resilience Forums were introduced in 2004 in the Civil Contingencies Act to provide the means for those involved in emergency preparedness to collaborate at a local level."The London Resilience Forum ensures London's preparedness in the event of emergencies and coordinates the activities of a wide range of organisations to achieve this. It also provides a link between emergency prepareness (sic) and resilience at the local and national levels."
Paul Webster ● 3235d
Presumably because the councils have little experience of dealing with disasters of this magnitude. The government needs to co-ordinate recovery from disaster. To ask individual councils is unfair and unwise, its just not their skillset. Presumably the government would only make noises about doing it if people start rioting over it or are destitute/dead in large numbers after the event. See Hurricane Catrina
Tony Mansell ● 3235d
Presumably to leave RBKC to sort out the elements that need direct access to the borough administrative systems since they will hold the records of the people.Makes sense when a tragedy is bigger than a single council is sized to respond to quickly.Why did it take until Sunday to organise though?
Paul Webster ● 3236d
It is. Ealing, in conjunction with other London councils, are coordinating both rescue and reception work because K&C aren't able to manage it. There is also support from the British Red Cross.
Sarah Woolmer ● 3237d