Three hundred housed in temporary accommodation as Peckham fire spreads » Housing » 24dash.com

More than 300 people were evacuated from their homes today as a fire ripped through a building site and spread to nearby flats.

The ferocious blaze began on a construction site in Peckham, south east London, at around 4.30am, and then devastated blocks of maisonettes and a pub.

Emergency workers evacuated 310 people, who were being housed in temporary accommodation while firefighters damped down the site.

Local MP Harriet Harman said it was a "miracle" there had been no fatalities.

Ten people, including two police officers, have been taken to hospital so far, with minor injuries such as smoke inhalation.

Barman John Osagie, 31, who lives near the site of the fire, said: "I was coming back from work at around 10 to four this morning and I saw the fire. I stood there and waited for the fire brigade to turn up. They tried to stop it but it was getting worse and worse, then they evacuated everybody.

"I was scared and I had to take some of my stuff and come and stand out in the cold."

He said he has "no clue" yet whether his home had been damaged by the fire.

Neighbour Lloyd Simmons was woken up by the fire brigade telling him to evacuate.

He said: "By the time we got out it was all on fire. Of course one would be terrified, it's fire, it's an emergency and you have to respond."

Speaking at the site of the blaze this morning, Ms Harman said the local community was in a "state of shock" and praised the courage of the emergency services.

She said: "They have been incredibly brave to go into these buildings. The heat of the blaze must have been unimaginable. It's really a miracle that nobody lost their life."

The fire and ambulance teams dealing with today's inferno previously battled a fatal flat blaze in nearby Camberwell in the summer.

Six people were killed in the tragedy at Lakanal House on July 3, which led to concerns about the design of the building.

Ms Harman said: "They were thinking 'No, not again', but I think we're really hopeful that there are no fatalities, that's our first concern, and our second is to help people who are in a state of shock.

"We have to make sure that people are re-housed and they are helped to just get on with their lives."

A spokesman for London Fire Brigade (LFB) said the building site near Carisbrooke Gardens first caught light, with gas cylinders possibly involved.

"The fire seems to have spread very rapidly," he said.

The Metropolitan Police said the flames had spread to blocks of flats and other properties in Sumner Road and Rosemary Road.

LFB assistant commissioner Steve Turek said: "The ferocity of the fire was a challenge when we first arrived because all the buildings were simultaneously burning.

"Homes were a particular concern to us because residents would have been sleeping at home at that time of the morning."

The British Red Cross is supporting people who have been evacuated and cannot return home.

Jonathan Edmondson, from the charity, said: "We know from past experience that people evacuated from their homes will not only be feeling shocked and upset, but will need practical items like clean clothes, a toothbrush and warm blankets, so the Red Cross have these items ready and we'll be there as long as we're needed."

Southwark Council said Carisbrooke Gardens, on the Willowbrook Estate, and nearby Oak Court, a mixed development of council and housing association homes, were damaged by the fire.

Council officers will assess how badly the buildings were affected as soon as possible.

Chief executive Annie Shepperd said the blaze would be investigated by the Health and Safety Executive because it started on a building site.

The Chief Fire Officers Association said it was becoming increasingly concerned about the number and severity of fires in timber framed buildings under construction.

In a statement they said: "The devastating fire in Peckham, south London, clearly illustrates the major problems caused not only to surrounding buildings but also through the rapid fire spread within the buildings themselves.

"Once the building is occupied the risks reduce significantly when all the inbuilt fire precautions have been installed. There have been a number of similar fires across the UK.

"The association is strongly advocating urgent action is taken to make this type of construction as safe as possible whilst the buildings are being erected."