Woman and child taken to hospital after fire breaks out at London tower block

A woman and a child have been taken to hospital after a fire at a block of flats in south-west London.

The blaze took hold in a flat on the 20th floor of a high-rise on Westbridge Road in Battersea.

Three people left the affected flat while another 50 people left the building before fire crews arrived, the London Fire Brigade (LFB) said.

Flames could be seen from the top of the block as dark plumes of smoke drifted into the sky.

LFB sent 70 firefighters to the scene after the blaze was reported at 8.02pm on Tuesday.

It had received 18 calls about the blaze.

Station commander Pete Johnson, who is at the scene, said: “Crews were faced with a lot of smoke issuing from the top of a block of flats on arrival.

“There was also lots of visible flame which has prompted a high number of calls to our control officers.

Tower block on fire
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“There are a number of road closures in place.”

Fire crews from Battersea, Fulham, Wandsworth, North Kensington and surrounding fire stations are at the scene.

Student Ishika Deb, 20, who lives in a neighbouring block of flats, said: “I heard a bang and glass smashing. I went out and saw there was glass on the floor. Then I heard a bang and looked up and saw fire.”

She said she heard a couple of bangs then noticed that “ash was coming out”.

An LFB spokesman said the cause of the fire is not currently known but it had been brought under control at 8.53pm.