Miracle as Syrian family of five who were reported missing in Grenfell Tower fire are found safe

A family of five thought to have died in the Grenfell Tower Inferno have been found to be alive and well. Metropolitan Police Commander Stuart Cundy, who is leading the investigation into the fire, announced the news in a statement this morning but did not reveal the identities of the survivors.

The survivors are believed to be the Khudair family, who have three grown daughters...



The family fled the war in Syria to start living in Britain. They lived half-way up Grenfell Tower and when they were not seen following the fire that killed more than 79 residents, they were reported missing by Catherine Lindsay, an adult language tutor who was teaching them English.

The Independent spoke to one of the daughters, Rawan on Facebook, and she confirmed that her entire family were unhurt in the fire although they had lost all of their belongings. She revealed that they were now getting help from kind members of the community.

Met Police Commander Stuart Cundy also revealed that the death toll from the tragedy has risen to 79. He said the death toll may still change, but not as significantly as it has in recent days. Five people have been formally identified after fire gutted the Grenfell residential block last Wednesday in West London. The rest who are still missing are presumed dead.

Mr Cundy said:  "The awful reality is that we may not be able to identify all those that died."

Speaking to reporters at New Scotland Yard, an emotional Cundy fought back tears as he spoke about the extent of the damage caused by the blaze inside the 24-storey tower. He said it had been "incredibly emotional working in there", adding: "On Saturday I went in myself and went to the top floor. And it is incredibly hard to describe the devastation in some parts of that building."

Residents gathered at the site in North Kensington to observe a minute's silence for those who died and all those affected by the blaze and firefighters respectfully halted work to join in. The silence was also observed at Government buildings across the country.