London tower fire: Eyewitnesses recount horror

A father threw his children out of the window:

Mahad Egal

"This was really, really horrific. There's a man who threw two of his children. We saw a lot, we saw a lot man. We saw a lot with our own eyes, we saw friends, families…"

Saw people flying out of their balconies:

Samira Awil

"I saw people flying out of their balconies and out of their windows. I saw kids screaming for help, people jumping out (of their windows). Saw a lot of people jumping out. The most shocking thing to everyone is how quick it literally went from zero to 100. It was (at first) just the fourth floor. It was bad but it was very minor (in comparison). It literally escalated so quickly."

We would have perished: Michael Paramasivan
"If we had stayed in that flat, we would've perished. My gut instinct told me just to get the girls out. I wrapped the little one up because of the smoke and I just got them out. I ignored official advice to stay in your home."

I've lost everything I own: Eyewitness
"I'm lucky to be alive - and lots of people have not got out of the building I've lost everything I own. I'm standing here in everything I've got"

Truly amazing firefighters: Paul Munakr
"As I was going down the stairs, there were firefighters, truly amazing firefighters that were actually going upstairs, to the fire, trying to get as many people out the building as possible"

Was woken by a neighbour: Zoe
"The whole landing was thick with smoke. The smoke alarms weren't going off but the way it spread so quickly from the fourth floor, all the way up to the 23rd floor was scary. I was woken by a neighbour banging on her door."

Reminded me of 9/11: Muna Ali
"The flames, I have never seen anything like it, it just reminded me of 9/11. The fire started on the upper floors ... oh my goodness, it spread so quickly. It had completely spread within half an hour."

Escaped wearing pajamas and bathrobe: Ruks Mamudu
"I escaped from my first floor apartment wearing only purple pajamas and bathrobe. I sat there watching my house burn down and watching people cry for help who couldn't come down."

It was fire up, up, up: Nassima Boutrig
"We saw the people screaming. A lot of people said 'Help! Help! Help!' The fire brigade could only help downstairs. It was fire up, up, up. They couldn't stop the fire. I woke up by sirens and smoke so thick that it filled my home as well."

I am lucky to be alive: Edward Daffarn
"I'm lucky to be alive. A neighbor's smoke alarm went off and another neighbor phoned and told me to get out. I consider this mass murder. Residents had complained for years to Kensington and Chelsea Council about the building's safety, to no avail."