'Grenfell cough’ fears raised by fire survivors who breathed potentially toxic dust

SURVIVORS of the Grenfell Tower blaze have revealed fears over the "Grenfell cough" in worrying parallels to the 9/11 tragedy.

Residents living around the scene of the horrific June 2017 blaze have demanded immediate health checks - worried about potentially harmful toxins released into the air.

The possibly toxic dust was found up to a mile from the tower after the tragedy.

Joe Delaney, who lived at the base of Grenfell Tower, told LBC: "It is something of a ticking timebomb.

"If you look at what's happening in the Manhattan area of New York at the moment, it's only now that people are starting to report health issues.

"If we're only seeing issues from 9/11 18 years later, it's probably going to be the same pattern in this area and the fact they haven't looked at it from the start means that valuable time when we could have got ahead of this issue has been wasted."

It comes as nearly 10,000 people were recorded to have suffered cancers linked to the toxic dust and smoke after two planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers in New York in 2001.

In all, more than 1,700 responders and others affected have died, including 420 of those stricken with cancer, officials said.

Cancers have various latency periods, typically emerging years after exposure to harmful substances.

Studies have confirmed that 9/11 rescue and recovery workers have significantly higher rates of thyroid cancer and skin melanoma, which is potentially fatal, than found in the general population, and face a higher risk of bladder cancer.

More than 70 people were killed when a blaze ripped through Grenfell Tower last year.

Last month, the coroner leading the inquest into the Grenfell tragedy called on the NHS to set up a screening programme for survivors and the emergency service providers who were first on the scene.

But at a meeting last night, Public Health England stressed there was a difference between the two events, saying the risk to health around the Grenfell site was "very low".

Officials confirmed they had been monitoring the air quality.

Professor Anna Stec, who has been carrying out tests on tower debris, found high levels of cancer-forming toxins in the dust and soil nearby.

Speaking to the Guardian, Prof Stec said: "I think my research will show there are a number of added toxicants that need to be measured, but it’s important to emphasise that this work has not yet been completed – and we still need to carry out a lot of analysis before we can be completely sure of the implications."

Public Health England said: "PHE has been assessing and monitoring air quality in the area surrounding Grenfell Tower since the fire started on 14 June 2017.

"PHE went beyond its remit and commissioned independent air quality monitoring at a time when the local authority was not in a position to do so.

"We are monitoring for pollutants that have both short and long term effects to be sure we understand if there is a risk to public health. Some of these results take longer to collect, however , our monitoring strategy is reviewed regularly and the risk to public health from air remains low."