Grenfell Tower cladding that may have led to fire was chosen to improve appearance of Kensington....

[Warpy]

4. The original concrete and glass building did look borderline Stalinist

and incredibly utilitarian, the way a lot of 70s construction did. They were sold for the view and the amenities, not the curb appeal.

There were flat panels above and below the windows and hollow triangular bumps between the units, going up and down the height of the building. If you looked at both video and stills of the earlier part of the fire, you could see fire traveling up inside them and setting them ablaze from the inside out. You could see the metal strapping they were affixed to. What wasn't apparent were the fire stops inside them that were supposed to be there. Either they were inadequate enough that the fire went right through them or corners were cut and not enough were placed to stop this fire.

It also looked like the exterior of the panels was fire resistant but the interior was less so. The exterior was what peeled off and dropped onto the first responders, making fighting the fire more difficult.

The investigation into this one is going to be a dilly.

Let's hope that there are some new fire regulations and that buildings prioritize sprinkler system refits over esthetics from now on.

So far they've found 12 dead. Horrible.