Read here about Simon Cowell’s fund-raising effort for the Grenfell Tower Fire Tragedy, the controversy over the cladding and more!

Updated On March 18, 2024 | Published By: Shahid | In Career , Lifestyle , Relationship

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The Joint Effort

The stars and young survivors of last week’s Grenfell Tower fire tragedy came together willingly to record the charity single intended to raise money and funds for helping the victims.

Brave children sang beside great celebrities like Stormzy, Pixie Lott, Robbie Williams, and Louise Tomlinson to create a 300-strong choir to record a version of Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water at a West London studio.

This group comprised a teenage girl whose house was totally gutted by the flames, a boy who had lost his dear friend in the tragedy, and the nurses who had assisted in the care of the victims. A source has revealed that many of the people who had come were on the verge of tears as they were leaving the studio after the recording.

The source said:

“It was really moving. The local residents became really emotional. Some of them actually lived in Grenfell Tower. Their homes have been destroyed.”

He added:

“It’s still very raw for a lot of them.”

Other renowned people who sang for the track include Rita Ora, Leona Lewis, Craig David, Emeli Sande, Raye, and many others. The idea was the brainchild of Simon Cowell and choirmaster Gareth Malone.

Simon Cowell’s efforts

Simon Cowell is a British TV and music producer who resides in Holland Park. This place is just about a mile from the scene of the tragedy. Simon said that he felt compelled to do this single after seeing the disaster. Simon plans to release the single on 21^st June 2017. Talking about the devastation, Simon said:

“Every hour it got worse and worse. You think of yourself in that situation. The loss of life is terrible. Many of the families have got nothing, no insurance.”

He further continued:

“I went around to have a look but couldn’t get close. It’s one of the most shocking things I have ever seen. I feel sadness, anger… so many emotions.”

Simon went on to say:

“The lack of safety is so bad. There will be huge repercussions. It hit me very hard, especially when I heard about the baby being thrown out of the window.”

Talking about the record, Simon elaborated:

“I was going to send a cheque but I thought we could do more. That’s why we are making a record. It sends a message of support. We got this up and running in 48 hours. I spoke to all the major labels and they got back to me in an hour offering their support.”

Tragedy details

Grenfell Tower is a 24-storied 220 feet high tower block of public housing in North Kensington, West London, England. A massive fire erupted in this tower on 14^th June 2017 and it is presumed that almost 79 people have lost their lives.

It took almost 24 hours to completely extinguish the fire. 45 fire engines and hundreds of firefighters were involved in the rescue operations. Fire at the top floors took the maximum time to control. The residents in the surrounding buildings were also evacuated for fear that the tower on fire may collapse with weakening.

65 people were evacuated and around 74 people are undergoing treatment at various hospitals for their burns. 17 are in critical condition. The cause of the fire remains unclear but the rapid spread of the fire was thought to have been aided by the cladding on the outside of the building.

The building construction was completed in 1974 and renovation tenders were invited in 2012. It was still being refurbished. There is an investigation underway to ascertain the cause of the fire and why it spread so fast. It has been alleged that the claddings used which consisted of inflammable material in between the aluminum were wrongly used.

These are supposedly banned and should not have been used there. However, the contractors have maintained that the claddings used have not been banned in the UK and were not responsible for the fire. Fingers are been pointed at the contractors and the Municipal Council.

The Grenfell Action Group put up on its website the following message:

“Regular readers of this blog will know that we have posted numerous warnings in recent years about the very poor fire safety standards at Grenfell Tower and elsewhere in RBKC. ALL OUR WARNINGS FELL ON DEAF EARS and we predicted that a catastrophe like this was inevitable and just a matter of time.”

Also, read Expensive Celebrity UK Homes! The most expensive homes owned by celebrities in the UK!

Short Bio on Simon Cowell

Simon Cowell is an English producer, TV personality, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He has been a Judge on various prominent shows in the UK and America. He founded the British entertainment company Syco. As a Judge, he is famous for making very blunt and insulting remarks about the contestants’ singing abilities. He is a very affluent and influential person and owns a number of cars. More bio…

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