Syrian refugee named as first victim of London fire
June 15, 2017 19:45
A 23-year-old Syrian student, who had fled his war-torn country and arrived in the UK three years ago, was today named as the first victim of the west London inferno which killed 17 people.
Mohammed al-Haj Ali, a civil engineering student at West London University, was separated from his older brother Omar on the stairs as they tried to escape the devastating fire that engulfed the 24-storey residential block Grenfell Tower yesterday.
Ali was following Omar but let go of his hand after becoming overwhelmed by the smoke.
He returned alone to their flat on the 14th floor, where
he was trapped for two hours.
He made phone calls to friends and family at home in Syria before sending one final message that read: "The fire is here now, goodbye", The Telegraph reported.
Friends and family confirmed that 25-year-old Omar, a business student, made it out alive and is recovering from smoke inhalation in Kings Cross hospital.
Abdulaziz Almashi, a friend of the family and co-founder of the UK-based Syrian Solidarity Campaign, said that Ali remained trapped with the firefighters unable to reach above the 13th floor.
"He survived Assad, the war in Syria, only to die in a tower block in London. There are no words," Almashi was quoted as saying by the daily.
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