5 September 2024

Poem

Forever In Our Hearts

It is said that from the roof
You could see to Windsor.
It is further said that eighteen 
Of the victims were children -
Killed by incompetence
And greed and passing the buck
Just to improve the structure's look.

Oh sing me a song of Grenfell Tower
And  flames that roared in that witching hour
A song of seventy two goodbyes,
Tears, excuses and heinous lies.

We hear the anguish of their cries
Forever in our hearts.
⦿

In memory of the seventy two residents of Grenfell Tower, West London 
who lost their lives in the early hours of June 14th, 2017. Seven years after
the terrible event, the official inquiry report has just come out. Of course you 
can never get the deceased back but you can give them the posthumous
justice they deserve. Now the families must wait yet more years for
that to happen. The story is not yet over. Not by a long way.

19 comments:

  1. It's already been that long? It seems like it was just the other day. Let me guess, the cause? Money.

    ReplyDelete
  2. There was a small story in our newspaper about suing the people who allowed the faulty building to happen, I think yesterday's paper which is already in the recycle bin. Was it really only seven years ago? It seems much longer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes. Seven years of continuing trauma for those who survived.

      Delete
  3. It was afternoon here when the fire occurred and as I returned to work after lunch, I walked past a tv showing the fire as it was happening. I remarked to someone, 'That is going to be very serious', and how right I was. I blame Cameron, as the culture of terrible behaviour and profit driven motives prevailed with his deregulation. The local authority was also very responsible.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rules are there for a reason. Cameron is also directly to blame for Brexit.

      Delete
  4. Every time I pass a high rise block of flats I think of Grenfell. If it were me, I would be terrified to live in a high-rise block now. I don't mind heights but the thought of being trapped in flames is more terrifying. Those poor families deserve justice. Why do these things take so long?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Like you I am ever so glad that I have never had to live in a tower block.

      Delete
  5. So sad these things happen when it seems they could have been so easily avoided.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Greedy companies placing profit and expediency in front of residents' safety.

      Delete
  6. Failure to regulate things properly. Cutting "red tape". It goes on, not only buildings and fire regs but also water companies, railways, and other areas. Red tape is there for a reason.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agree 100% Tasker. It is too common for companies to think of red tape as an unnecessary obstacle that gets in the way of progress.

      Delete
    2. After commenting, I thought "except in education" where the amount of red tape introduced from the 1990s onwards has almost destroyed it. When people complain about university studies being poor value, they don't realise how much crap they are paying for, with multiple marking, endless exam boards, peer observation of teaching, duplicate exam papers because the resits have to be held in term time, and so on, most of which never used to be done.

      Delete
  7. No one should need to live in these awful high rise concrete blocks of flats. Especially when it's only next to the richest borough Chelsea YP.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Like you I am happy to walk out of our house directly onto the ground. That is how humans are meant to live.

      Delete
  8. Money grubbers the world over make this a sad and dangerous world.

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a tragedy. It's a shame it has taken so long to resolve it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. People need to go to jail.

    ReplyDelete

Mr Pudding welcomes all genuine comments - even those with which he disagrees. However, puerile or abusive comments from anonymous contributors will continue to be given the short shrift they deserve. Any spam comments that get through Google/Blogger defences will also be quickly deleted.

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