It was about 12:54AM (1:54AM our time) when reports of a fire in north Kensington started coming in.

Engulfed in flames was the 24-storey Grenfell Tower, containing around 120 flats. Now, seven hours later, the building is still burning and is surrounded by thick, grey smoke.

According to the BBC, more than 30 people have been taken to the hospital, although that nature and level of their injuries are unknown, and a “significant number of people are unaccounted for”.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan declared it a major incident:

Witnesses reported seeing people jumping from as high as the 12th floor and others screaming for help at their windows.

Here’s some footage of the flames:

The tower could be seen burning from miles away, with the fire out of control from the 10th storey upwards:

An unmanned hydraulic platform has been shooting water at the side of the building at about the 10th floor.

Simon Lederman said firefighters had not been able to tackle the flames on higher storeys.

Andy Moore added: “We’ve seen debris falling from the building, we’ve heard explosions, we’ve heard the sound of glass breaking.

“The police keep pushing back their cordons, pushing back members of the public for fear the building might collapse.”

Other than that, not much else is known. Let’s just hope those people who were reportedly in the building are OK and there are minimal casualties.

[source:huffingtonpost&bbc]