Two young sisters reported missing in the Grenfell Towner inferno have been found alive after escaping from the 20th floor, but family are still looking for their parents and baby sister.
Fears were growing for 6-year-old Tazmin Belkadi and 8-year-old Malek, as distraught relatives searched hospitals and appealed for help on social media. Their mother’s cousin confirmed today that he had found the girls and one of them was in a coma being treated for injuries at St Mary’s Hospital.
The desperate search continues for the girls’ mother Farah Hamdan, father Omar Belkadi and six-month-old sister Leena, who haven’t been seen since the West London tower went up in flames earlier this week, killing at least 17 people.
Mr Chaoui, the family’s cousin, told the Guardian that Tazmin and Malek were in the family’d flat on the 20th floor when the fire broke out before 1am earlier this week. It was unclear how the girls made it out alive or whether they were with their parents and sister when they fled the blaze.
“I was trawling hospitals and yesterday morning found two of Farah’s children in St Mary’s,” he added. “It’s not because authorities contacted us but because we begged and cajoled a nurse who took pity and said there was a child upstairs who matched our description.”
The death toll was expected to rise as firefighters search the building, and a community leader, who asked not to be identified, said there were fears no one on the top three floors survived.
It was unclear how the girls made it out alive or whether they were with their parents and sister when they fled the blaze.
