Kriti Mehrotra
With Netflix’s ‘Grenfell: Uncovered’ chronicling the tragedy of an apartment tower fire in London, England, in the early hours of June 14, 2017, we get a documentary that is simply gripping. It incorporates a combination of archival documents as well as footage, along with exclusive interviews with survivors, witnesses, and experts, to really underscore the gravity of the event. Amongst those to thus feature here is Chris Batcheldor, a firefighter who had arrived at the scene after the blaze had already spread from its initial point of origin inside a 4th-floor kitchen.
Chris Batcheldor Vividly Remembers the Fateful Night Grenfell Tower Caught Fire
Hailing from the wondrous yet small town of Woking in Surrey, England, around 23 miles from central London, Chris Batcheldor always knew he wanted to pursue a not-so-traditional career. Therefore, by the time he was in his mid-20s in May 2001, the Winston Churchill Secondary School graduate had trained as a firefighter and landed a spot in the London Fire Brigade. Little did he know that just a little over 16 years later, his unit would be called to one of the worst fire catastrophes in the nation, as the entire building had somehow gotten engulfed in flames.
Chris can’t really recall on which road he first saw the blazing Grenfell Tower while making his way there with his unit, but he does remember it being to his left and lighting up the entire area. His team had never been to this structure before, so they didn’t know its layout, the number of flats it had, or even its emergency exits, meaning they were essentially coming in blind. They were given a blueprint on arrival as routine, yet it was still a surprise to them how narrow the stairwells were when they went inside with the sole focus of helping as many people as possible.
Everybody was caught off guard by this ordeal since the initial partial fire had been contained, only for sparks to catch on to the aluminum-polyethylene cladding that wrapped the whole building. As a result, what ensued was pure chaos, especially because, due to a lack of proper knowledge regarding this highly combustible material, even the firefighters at the scene didn’t know that instead of following the normal protocol of advising people to stay put, they should have immediately begun evacuations. By the time this was ordered, a little less than 2 hours after the first flame, dark, thick smoke had taken over the building – the firefighters couldn’t see a foot in front of them, even with torches.
Chris Batcheldor Himself is Traumatized From What Transpired
As a high-ranking firefighter at the scene, Chris was called to testify for the public inquiry into this tragedy, which he did without any hesitation despite his guilt over not being able to do enough. According to his statements, when he was down at the base of the Tower at one point, a man was talking on the phone while telling firefighters his family was trapped on the 14th floor. He took the cell phone and introduced himself, following which he learned he was speaking to Zainab Deen, who was trapped in a corner apartment with her 2-year-old son Jeremiah and other neighbors.
Chris promised Zainab someone would come to get them soon, only to be told by the Fire Survival Guidance a short while later that it’s no longer possible for them to go beyond the 12th floor. Nevertheless, so as to not scare the 32-year-old mother of one further, he made the decision to lie by continuously telling her to stay strong because firefighters were making their way to her. He even testified that while he could hear Jeremiah crying at the beginning of the call, he went silent after a while, just for his mother to somberly say, “My boy’s dead” and “I want to be with my son.”
Chris’ response to Zainab was, “Don’t talk like that. We are coming for you. Don’t give up,” because he couldn’t bear to tell her the truth, but he did give the male a final chance to talk to her. He passed the phone to the man named Francis, asking him to express his affection to the mother while encouraging her to keep fighting because he is waiting for her on the other side. When the firefighter got back on the call, there was a point when Zainab stopped talking, and after 5-10 minutes of eerie quiet, he heard “ear-splitting screams” before complete silence. He knew then she had passed away, yet he couldn’t convey this to panicked yet hopeful Francis in that moment, so he told him the call had either disconnected or maybe the phone’s battery had died. The truth came out later – everyone in that apartment died.
Chris Batcheldor is Pursuing His Passions Today
While the events of June 14, 2017, left Chris traumatized, it appears as if he and the Fire Department have learned from the mistakes and are now even more motivated to serve their people. In fact, the firefighter who joined the London Fire Brigade back in May 2001 is currently serving in the Fire Safety Department in the Paddington area of the City of Westminster, London. He has proudly held this position for the past 2 years, having evolved from just a Firefighter as well as a Crew Manager at the Fulham Fire Station after 18 years. It’s evident that despite everything, he loves his job.
Apart from being a firefighter, Chris is also a martial arts enthusiast, a passion that developed when he was just a child growing up in Woking and spending time at the Leisure Centre. We specify this because he has actually managed to hone his love for the world of combat sport into a full-fledged second career as an officiator/referee – he truly has expanded his wings. In fact, most recently, he served as a referee for not only the America-based Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) but also the ONE Championship as well as the 21st Century Fighting Championship. As for his personal standing, the 50-year-old is a proud father of three. He has 2 adult girls, who have families of their own, and a young boy, with whom he often likes to spend time doing outdoor activities like karting, golfing, or water sports.
Read More: Where is Behailu Kebede Now? Update on the Grenfell Fire Survivor
