Interesting detail in today’s Grenfell inquiry report about one man: an engineer called Jason Allday who worked for gas supplier Cadent. He is singled out for praise. 1/5
He is an emergency engineer but was not on standby that night. He turned up off his own back after seeing a TV news report. He was familiar with the area and ended up staying for 24 hours. 2/5
He got to Grenfell at 07:20 and was told the LFB wanted the gas turned off. At 14:00 that afternoon the LFB asked him if he was prepared to go into the basement to shut off valves himself. 3/5
At 15:50 he went in with LFB officers carrying riot shields to protect him from falling debris. The plan worked, the flow of gas to the building ceased and the flames died down almost immediately. 4/5
The report says there can be “no doubt” Allday and his team did an excellent job in dangerous conditions. “Their success was to a large extent due to Jason Allday’s inspirational leadership, clarity of planning and careful execution.” 5/5
