Block of flats covered in Grenfell-style cladding

RESIDENTS of a tower block were woken by firefighters after Andrew Dmytruk torched vehicles in the basement car park in the early hours.

- By JOSHUA HARTLEY

But the consequences could have been much more serious, as the 14-storey Litmus Building in Huntingdon Street has been covered in dangerous cladding for years - even after 2017's deadly Grenfell fire killed 72 people in London.

More than 50 firefighters were needed to deal with the Litmus Building blaze which saw many residents cleared from the building. Nobody was injured but the fire service said lives had been put at risk.

The 2007-built structure contains combustible polyisocyanurate (PIR) and expanded polystyrene insulation, the first of which was found to have likely contributed to the spread of fire at Grenfell and creates toxic cyanide fumes when burned.

Owner Estates & Management Limited has now confirmed it will be using money from the Government's Cladding Safety Fund to repair the building, which had been criticised by the fire service even before they were called to tackle the vehicle fire on April 29 last year.

“We are working with all relevant parties to ensure that the Litmus Building is remediated as quickly and appropriately as possible, with homeowners being kept regularly updated on progress,” a spokesperson said.