Grenfell Tower death toll of 71 unlikely to rise as last inquests open

The last two of the 70 inquests for victims of the Grenfell Tower fire were opened and adjourned on Wednesday with the coroner paying tribute to bereaved families and the “unrelenting work of dedicated professionals” who recovered and identified remains.

The Westminster coroner, Fiona Wilcox, who has presided over 19 hearings in the past five months, said the final inquests marked an important milestone.

At the end of proceedings she read the names and ages of 70 people who died in the fire, and asked those present to stand for two minutes’ silence.

A baby, Logan Gomes, was stillborn on the day of the fire, bringing the death toll to 71. Police have said this figure was unlikely to rise.

Wilcox told the court: “All those on the missing list have been found and identified. It is highly unlikely that this figure will now change.

“Every bereaved family has had the remains of their loved ones released back to them and most funerals have taken place.”

She said that in the days after the fire on 14 June, it was feared that the death toll would be higher and that some people may never be found.

The recovery and identification of the remains of all those believed to have died was due to “the unrelenting work of dedicated professionals from disaster victim identification recovery teams, mortuary staff, investigative police officers, coroner’s officers and experts such as odontologists, pathologists and [forensic] anthropologists, and all those who worked behind the scenes to support them.

“Together we have worked as a team to restore names to the dead and return them to their families.”

The final inquests were into the deaths of Victoria King, 71, and her daughter, Alexandra Atala, 40. The two women were found on the 20th floor of the 24-storey tower. Atala’s remains were identified through forensic anthropology and secondary supporting evidence; King’s through DNA.

Relatives of the women were present in court to hear Wilcox open and adjourn the inquests pending the outcome of the public inquiry and police investigation into the fire. If there are outstanding questions relating the deaths of the victims, further hearings could be held in the future.

In the vast majority of cases, the provisional cause of death has been given as consistent with the effects of fire, although a small number were attributed to injuries from jumping or falling from a height.

The youngest victim to have an inquest was six-month-old Leena Belkadi; the oldest person to die in the fire was 84-year old Sheila, who was known by her first name. Inquests have been held into the deaths of 17 children. The largest number of inquests in a single hearing was 10, on 12 July.

Each inquest has been attended by DCI Matt Bonner of the Metropolitan police, who is leading the investigation into the fire. There have been emotional scenes in the wood-panelled courtroom as relatives have heard details being recorded of their loved ones’ deaths.

Westminster coroner’s court has been dedicated to Grenfell inquests for the past five months, but staff will now return to routine duties. The temporary mortuary and investigation suites erected in the court’s back yard will be dismantled.

Wilcox reminded the court of the words of Lord Bingham on the purposes of judicial investigation into deaths: “To ensure so far as possible that the full facts are brought to light; that culpable and discreditable conduct is exposed and brought to public notice; that suspicion of deliberate wrongdoing (if unjustified) is allayed; that dangerous practices and procedures are rectified; and that all those who have lost their relatives may at least have the satisfaction of knowing that lessons learned from this death may save the lives of others.”