Statement No.: I Dated: 20 May 2018 THE GRENFELL TOWER ...... · 11. My full name is Andreia Perestrelo, I was formally a resident of Grenfell Tower, and have now been permanently

Witness Name: Andreia PERESTRELO

Statement No.: I

Dated: 20 May 2018

THE GRENFELL TOWER INQUIRY

WITNESS STATEMENT OF ANDFtEIA PERESTRELO

FLAT 183 FLOOR 21

I, ANDREIA PERESTRELO, of

follows:-

Introduction

1. I am a core participant in the Grenfell Tower Public Inquiry.

2. I was born on 1979].

WILL SAY as

3. I have made a statement to the Metropolitan Police and I confirm that I consent to any

police statement I have made being disclosed to the Grenfell Tower Public Inquiry.

4. I moved into Grenfell Tower in April 2007 with my husband, Marcio Gomes born on

and our two daughters, Gomes born on

Gomes born on

Lili, a Maltese Chihuhua.

and

We all lived in the Tower with our dog,

5. I was seven months pregnant with our son, L[ogan] at the time of the fire and both

L[ogan] and I were doing well. I was happy and having a healthy pregnancy. The 14th

June 2017 was due to be my last day at work before starting my maternity leave. Marcio

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and I were looking forward to the arrival of our son and the girls were excited about

having a baby brother.

6. I had lived in Grenfell Tower for over 10 years until my home was destroyed by the fire

on the 14 June 2017. My family and I will never forget that day as not only did we lose

our home, our friends and neighbours, but we also lost our baby son, L[ogan], L[ogan]

died in my womb after the fire, as I had inhaled a lot of smoke and cyanide.

7. Our dog, Lili, was also killed in the fire

8. I lived in Flat 183, on the 20 Floor of Grenfell Tower. I was 37 years old at the time of

the fire, Marcio was 38 years old, was 12 years old and was 10 years

old.

9. I strongly feel that the people who consented to the modifications to Grenfell Tower are

responsible for the death my son. If it had not been for the fire, L[ogan] would still be

here. My Consultant Obstetrician, Dr Leonie Penna confirmed to me both verbally and in

writing after my caesarean that L[ogan] was a extremely well grown baby for 30 weeks

gestation.

10. This statement is mainly about my experiences and that of my family on 14 June 2017 and

it deals with what the Inquiry has called 'Phase 1' matters, setting out what happened to

us when the fire broke out and consumed Grenfell Tower. I will provide greater detail of

'Phase 2' matters as the Inquiry progresses.

Personal Details

11. My full name is Andreia Perestrelo, I was formally a resident of Grenfell Tower, and have

now been permanently housed in London

12. I was born in and I came to the United Kingdom in 2001.

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13. I am, at the time of this statement, six months pregnant and we are expecting a baby girl in

September of this year (2018).

14. I consider myself to be healthy but I suffer from asthma. I have not had any asthma

attacks since I was a young child.

15. I am employed as a retail supervisor at a clothing retail store

and I am presently on maternity leave.

16. I completed my education in Portugal to high school level where I obtained the equivalent

of GCSEs.

17. I do not have any special communication needs

Family life

1 8. I describe my family as my husband, Marcio, our two daughters, and BM,

and our late son, L[ogan], along with the unborn daughter I am presently carrying.

Life before the fire

19. Before the refurbishment works, our flat was on the 18th floor of the Tower and after the

refurbishment works it was on the 21st floor as they had added three new floors. It was a 2

bedroom flat with a separate lounge, kitchen and bathroom.

20. I would describe my life in the Tower before the fire as very happy. We had a lot to look

forward to with the arrival of our first son, L[ogan]. The girls were excited and Marcio

and I were over the moon. We were preparing for L[ogan's] arrival and we were also

planning to buy our flat in the Tower as we were very happy there. It was a very safe and

secure environment and we wanted to make it our permanent home

21. Everyone who lived in Grenfell Tower was friendly and we never had any trouble with

our neighbours. I remember when we moved into the Tower, our next door neighbours


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welcomed us with cookies. It was just a lovely place to live and everyone got on really

well. There was a very strong sense of community within Grenfell Tower.

22. Our girls would play on the landing just outside our front door every weekend with our

neighbours' children, M[ehdi], N[urhud] and ME, and it was safe. They did not need

to use the lifts or the stairs; they would be able to play with the neighbours children on the

landing as there was a lot of space.

23. When the weather was good, the girls would go to the park just outside the Tower with

our neighbours' children and I would be able to see them playing in the park from my

kitchen window. I only started to let the girls out to the park by themselves from 2016 as

they were getting older. It was a very safe area and we never had any problems with

vehicle theft or burglaries.

24. One of the things which I loved about living in Grenfell Tower was that there was a mix

of cultures and ethnicities in the Tower.

25. We were especially close to the neighbours on our floor as, although everyone in the

Tower was friendly, we would only see the other residents in the lift or coming in and out

of the Tower. We had lived in the Tower for just over 10 years before the fire and had

gotten to know the neighbours on our corridor very well. Our girls had also grown up with

their friends and neighbours and they played with the neighbours' children virtually every

weekend. They had a happy and fun childhood.

26. We had asked for our flat to be valued on two occasions as we wanted to buy it, and make

it our forever home.

Concerns about fire safety

27. I was not provided with any information about fire safety when I moved into Grenfell

Tower. I read a notice about fire safety on the notice board which confirmed the meeting

point outside the Tower and advised occupants not to use the lifts in the event of a fire. I

had heard about there being a stay put policy in the Tower but I cannot remember where I


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had heard this. I had several worries and concerns about fire safety in the Tower and I will

set out each of my concerns below.

28. My primary concern was about the fire exits. Before the refurbishment works started,

there were two fire exits in the Tower. One was at the main entrance and the other was the

walk way which was renamed the PI floor after they carried out the refurbishment works.

The people authorising the refurbishment removed the fire exit via the walkway on the

first floor during the works, which meant that all of the residents in the Tower had only

one escape route, which was out of the front entrance. The fire exit on the walkway had

been removed by Rydon, the contractors, so that the Kensington and Chelsea Tenants

Management Organisation ('the TMO') could use the space created to add additional flats

in the Tower. I was not happy about the removal of the walk way as this meant that we

were left with only one exit from the Tower in an emergency.

29. I discussed my concerns with Linda, a Rydon employee who acted as a liaison between

the residents, the TMO and Rydon in relation to the works. She was a really nice lady and

I spoke with her nearly everyday as I would see her when I was taking the girls to school.

I discussed any concerns I had about the works as and when I saw Linda. Linda was only

there for a few years; she was not there up until the end of the works. I cannot remember

Linda's response to the removal of the 2ild fire exit.

30. I had assumed that The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea ('RBKC'), the TMO

and the contractors knew what they were doing and that it was all legal, and in compliance

with health and safety legislation. I was not consulted, as a resident, in relation to the

removal of the second exit from the building in which I lived. This was common, as the

TMO and council did not consult with the residents or proactively seek our views or

thoughts.

3 1 . I also had concerns about there only being a single emergency escape stairwell for the

entire Grenfell Tower. I have been to other tower blocks where there are two staircases

providing emergency evacuation options. This worried me as there were several hundred

people living in Grenfell Tower, but they all had access to but one staircase in the event of

an emergency requiring a full evacuation.


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32. In the first three years of living in the Tower, I recall that there was a fire in the Grenfell

Tower and the TMO informed us that we were no longer allowed to leave our recycling

outside our doors. They provided a bin which was placed outside for residents to use

instead. I do not recall there being any problems with recycling being left on the landing

after this.

33. There was a fire hose on our corridor, just outside our front door, which had been there

ever since we moved into the Tower. We had never been shown how to use the fire hose

and in the 10 years that I had lived at Grenfell Tower, I had never seen anyone from the

London Fire Brigade, the council or the TMO come and check whether or not the hose

was actually working or whether it was in a good condition. I thought the hose looked old

and discoloured.

34. The London Fire Brigade came to our flat on a few occasions to check the smoke alarms

but I do not remember them checking the fire hoses during these visits. The first visit was

before the refurbishment works started and the second was after the works inside my flat

had been completed. There were two smoke alarms in my flat, one in the kitchen and one

in the hallway. I was not told anything about fire safety during these visits but I remember

the second visit as the fire fighter had checked the smoke alarm in our kitchen and told me

that someone had put the battery in the wrong way. He corrected this and made sure it was

working. I remember signing a record to confirm that the London Fire Brigade had

checked the alarms in my flat on both occasions.

Concerns about modifications to the tower

35. I had a few concerns about the modifications to the Tower and again, I will set out each of

my concerns in turn below.

36. I was worried about the concrete on the outside of the Tower being covered with what I

understood to be a plastic material. This worried me for safety reasons. I just questioned

why this was being done, it was not necessary and I considered it to be cosmetic. I spoke


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with Marcio about my concerns because he was a member of The Grenfell Compact

Group.

37. I had greater concerns about the modifications to the inside of the Tower and to my flat

38. The contractors had installed gas pipes on our landing during the works which had been

left exposed and ran along the top of our neighbours' front doors. I recall speaking with

my next door neighbour, Abdul el-Wahabi, as the contractors had started putting the gas

pipes around his front door. He was the one who told me that they were gas pipes.

39. I spoke to one of the contractors as they were installing the pipes on our landing and asked

him why they were installing new gas pipes as there was no requirement for gas in the

building. He told me that there were still a few flats in the Tower that were still running

on gas and this is why they were installing the gas pipes. I told him that I did not want the

gas pipes around my door and the contractors agreed, although, the pipe still ran along the

side of my door.

40. I also had safety concerns about the glass wall which had been installed on the ground

floor as there were always children playing in that area and I did not consider it safe. The

glass wall was to the right on the ground floor of the Tower when you walked into the

Tower through the main entrance. This was one of the first things they did as part of the

refurbishment. I was worried that children may accidently run into the glass and break it.

41. I also had concerns about the cupboard just outside the kitchen in our flat as this cupboard

backed onto the boiler in the kitchen. The ceiling on the inside of the cupboard was

covered in black ash as the old boiler released smoke. I asked Marcio about this and he

told me that this could only be coming from the boiler. I recall either Marcio or I pointing

out the black ash to someone from the TMO and they confirmed it was coming from the

boiler, but there was nothing they could do about it as there was no ventilation When the

boiler was replaced, they removed the old boiler and we had no problems after this.

42. We also had electrical problems in the Tower. One of them related to the lights on our

landing which would frequently go out during the refurbishment works. The emergency


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lighting did not always come on so there were occasions where we were left in complete

darkness on the landing for up to 3 to 4 hours as there was no other source of light.

43. We also started to experience problems with the electricity in our flat during the

refurbishment works. The plug sockets in our flat were short circuiting and damaged some

of our electrical appliances. The TMO checked the electrics in the flat but I am unable to

remember if anything was changed. Marcio dealt with this, the TMO offered us a nominal

amount of compensation to cover the cost of more than 8 damaged items which we

thought was unacceptable. I do not remember the outcome.

44. Our main issues with the refurbishment works were in relation to the new windows. After

the new windows had been fitted, there were gaps along the bottom of the windows under

the window ledge which was letting draught into our flat. The draught was strong and I

could feel it whilst I was sat on the sofa in my living room, it was also moving the curtains

in the rooms when it was particularly windy and this was very noticeable in the girls'

bedroom. I cannot remember if the gaps were visible but I could feel the draught. I recall

asking the contractors to come and inspect the windows and when they came to inspect,

they resealed them with filler. This did not work as the curtains in the girls' bedroom were

still moving when it was windy. I did not go back to the TMO or the contractors as I think

this was shortly before the fire.

45. I only spoke to Marcio about my concerns as he was a member of The Grenfell Compact

Group and he would raise any concerns we both had during his meetings with the TMO

and Rydon. Marcio's response to my concerns was that they were trying to make the

Tower aesthetically nicer for the rich people in the area. Marcio had told me this after

returning from one of his meetings, I do not know exactly who told him this.

The evening of the 13 June 2017

46. The four of us had been out as a family on the evening of 13 June 2017, having dinner

with friends. We arrived home at approximately 10:00 pm to 10:30 pm.


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47. We had not noticed anything unusual when we came home that evening. Marcio and I had

gone into our bedroom and got ready for bed and I had sent the girls in to their bedroom to

get ready for bed. was asleep by 11.00pm and Marcio was asleep by midnight.

48. It took me a while to fall asleep, I cannot remember the time. was still awake on

her tablet computer.

The morning of the 14 June 2017

49. I have subsequently learned that the fire at Grenfell Tower started at 00:54 in the morning

of 14 June 2017. I became aware of the fire when our neighbour, Helen Gebremeskel and

her daughter, from flat 186 on the same floor as us, knocked on our door

to wake us. I cannot remember the time. I could also hear shouting and loud voices

outside the Tower after I was woken up by Helen banging on the door.

50. I remember Helen knocking on our front door but the details of what happened after that

are a little hazy. She told Marcio and I that there was a fire in the Tower, she was

panicked and she was talking fast, like she did not know what to do.

51. I also remember seeing people talking on our landing with our neighbours next door, the

el-Wahabi family and they were going into their flat, but I do not remember much more

than that. I think I saw Abdulla el-Wahabi but I cannot remember, he lived in flat 182

with his wife and three children.

52. The el-Wahabi family, I learned later, sadly died in the fire.

53. Helen, her daughter, who was 12 years old at the time of the fire, and their dog

Simba, a Chihuahua came into our flat. I remember sending MI into the girls' room

because my daughter was still awake and playing on her tablet computer.

54. As Helen and I were walking into the kitchen, I think she told me that the fire was at the

window in her flat in the living room. I do not know what she meant by this.


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55. Helen was on her mobile telephone the majority of the time. I know that she had been

speaking with Nadia Choucair, our neighbour in flat 193 on the 22nd floor, I do not know

if she was speaking with her the whole time or with others. I was not paying attention.

Nadia's flat was directly above our flat.

56. I do not remember much about the events that followed after.

57 I do not remember Marcio coming back into the flat or anything like that. I just remember

standing by the kitchen window a lot, trying to see what was happening or hear what

people were saying. I could see a lot of people gathering outside the Tower by the park

and by the ramp. They were shouting up at the Tower 'You need to get out', 'Get out'

'There is a fire, get out'. I could also hear Nadia screaming for help from outside of her

kitchen window. I looked out of the kitchen and when I looked up, I could see a hand

from Nadia's flat waving a white towel or cloth outside the window. I do not know who it

was.

58. I was panicked, worried and in a state of shock.

59. At some point I could see the fire on the outside of the Tower, on the left and right sides

from the kitchen window. I had to reach out of the kitchen window to see properly as

pillars restricted our views to the left and right sides of the Tower and I was only able to

see the fire as it was being blown by the wind. I could also hear a crackling and burning

noise coming from the right hand side of the Tower. I remember seeing it spread very

quickly.

60. I could hear screams from my neighbours above shouting for help and from outside the

Tower. I could smell burning and see a lot of smoke coming through the front door into

our flat. The smoke was thick and black.

61. I received several calls from family and friends whilst I was inside the flat telling me to

get out of the flat as they had heard about the fire either from other friends or in the news.

I cannot remember the times of the calls or the number of the calls I received but they


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started after Helen came into our flat. My family and friends all told me the same things,

'Get out, there is a fire, it is really bad and you need to get out now'.

62. We only stayed in the flat as long as we did because Marcio had spoken to 999 and he told

me that help was coming. I can only remember trying to leave the flat once before finally

leaving the flat and on that first attempt I remember not being able to breathe as soon as

we got onto the landing, and I panicked and we all came back in to the flat.

63. I remember seeing Marcio soak the living room floor with water, I do not know how but I

just remember him throwing water on the floor.

64. There was a lot of smoke inside our flat at this point and it was very hot, like a dry sauna,

before we left. I seem to have blanked it from my mind, but I now know that the fire had

reached our bedroom as Marcio saw it. I was not aware of that when we left the flat. I just

remember Marcio saying that we had to leave. Marcio gave all of us wet towels to cover

our mouths and we had big sheets over our heads.

65. We all left the flat together and the girls, and I, were holding the dogs.

Helen was in front, was behind her and then it was me, ME, and

Marcio was at the end of the group. Marcio had co-ordinated the exit and his instructions

were to grab hold of the hand rail as soon as we got onto the stairwell and to keep hold of

it until we got to the bottom of the stairs.

66. When we walked out of the flat, it was pitch black, I could not see a thing. All I could

smell was smoke, plastic and chemicals burning. It was very hot, again like a sauna.

67. As soon as we came out on to our landing, we all headed towards the stairwell which was

on the right, we were all lined up one behind the other. The smoke on the stairwell was

very thick, I could not breathe or see through the smoke. I felt like I was choking and I

thought I was going to die. It was pitch black and I could not see. We were able to get

onto the stairs immediately as I do not think there was anyone on the stairs towards the

top of the Tower. The smoke on the landing and the stairwell was the same. It took maybe

couple of seconds from my front door to walk onto the stairwell. I knew the direction to

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walk in and as soon as I got onto the stairwell, I grabbed hold of the handrail, and I did not

let go. There was no noise at the top but as we got further down the stairs, I could hear

people on the stairwell crying and asking for help. I cannot remember how far down the

stairwell this was. I could not see anyone as it was pitch black. I did not know what we

were walking over to begin with, it was only when I tripped over someone and they let out

a groan, that I realised I was walking over people.

68. I remember someone grabbed my ankle and somebody also did the same to as

we were coming down the stairs. We were one of the last to come out of the building.

69. Although we all left as a group and we were behind one another in a chain, I was only

holding my daughter, hand as we came down the stairs. I was going as fast as I

could but I was heavily pregnant at the time and it was difficult to go fast as I was holding

my daughter's hand.

70. I just kept saying to EMI as we were going down, 'Keep going, keep going'. 1 1

started saying she could not go anymore and she fell, had tripped over a body on

the stairs which caused her to fall. I picked 1=1 up and was holding her by the collar

of her clothes and started pulling her down the stairs. I was exhausted, out of breath and I

felt like I was going to collapse just before I saw the light from a fire fighter. I cannot

remember where this was but I assume it was the 6th or 7th floor. The fire fighters escorted

and I out of the Tower. They just kept saying, 'Keep going, keep going', I looked

back and saw MI with a fire fighter and felt relieved.

71 . Descending felt like a lifetime but I cannot remember how long it took.

72. I remember telling a fire fighter while I was still inside the Tower by the main entrance

that there were still people on the stairs. It was lighter further down the stairs but this was

not until we got to the floors lower down the Tower where the water was gushing down

the stairs.

73. Escaping the Grenfell Tower fire was the worst experience of my entire life. I thought that

we were all going to die and that is the worst feeling to have had to have experienced.


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74. I did not encounter fire fighters until the lower levels of the Tower when they helped

guide me down stairs.

75. This is the only contact I had with them.

Outside the tower

76. I do not remember much about being outside the Tower. I remember sitting on the floor

inside the building just before I was escorted outside the building. I remember sliding

down against the wall to sit down as I could not stand anymore. The fire fighters came

over to me and told me that we needed to get out and this is when two fire fighters held

the shields over and I and escorted us out of the Tower.

77. They started to walk us up the path away from the Tower but did not walk us all the way

up, they left us on the path by the trees following which and I continued walking

on our own. I remember walking past a dead body on the side which had been covered

with a white sheet.

78. and I went and sat down next a tree and waited for Marcio and . Waiting

outside of Grenfell Tower during the fire was horrible and distressing in the extreme as

there was no sign of Marcio and . I was worried that something bad might have

happened because it was taking them longer to arrive. As I was exiting the Tower via the

main entrance, I had heard the fire fighters leading people in two directions and I was

hoping that Marcio and

them.

had been led in the other direction as I could not see

79. I have seen a still image of the cctv footage of me getting to the bottom of the stairs to

leave the Tower. My exit time is identified as 03:37:42. who was with me is also

captured on a still cctv photograph as exiting just before me at 03:37:31.

80. Marcio and were not with us they were still in the stairwell. I have seen still

photographs of their exit times. An image of who is thought to be is timed at


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03:51:36 and the image of Marcio exiting the Tower is timed at 03:55:28. They obviously

came out much later than me and

81. We were given foil blankets and water whilst we were sat outside. There were lots of

people. I remember meeting with one of my neighbours and asking her if she was ok.

82. I waited and kept looking for Marcio and it felt like a long time and I was

worried that something had happened to them. I saw Marcio first but I did not see

as there was a lot of commotion around me. I was panicking as I could not see

When arrived she needed immediate medical attention . Marcio told me not to

look and that she was being taken care of and that is when I saw paramedics around her.

She was on the floor, I do not know what they were doing. While I sat by the tree, I knew

that was in shock because she kept staring at the building, I kept asking her

questions and she just kept saying 'Yes, yes, yes'. There was no engagement or

interaction, she was in shock.

83. was being taken into an ambulance and Marcio, and I were also told to

go into the same ambulance as at that point they realised I was pregnant and needed to be

checked immediately. I do not know what happened to Helen and her daughter; I know

Helen was looking for and we both I assumed that she had gone out of the other

exit.

Injuries suffered

84. When I arrived at Kings College Hospital I was put into an induced coma for 4 to 5 days. I

do not remember why but I think it was because they need to clean my body of all the

toxins.


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85. I think I passed out when I got to hospital as I only remember getting there, telling them

my name, and names and then being told to lie down on a stretcher, I

do not remember anything after this.

86. I was treated for smoke inhalation and cyanide poisoning. My medical notes will confirm

the details of my injuries and treatment.

87. When I awoke from my induced coma, I was told by my Consultant that L[ogan] had to

be taken out by caesarean section as he was passing the toxins and poisons to me and vice

versa. This is what caused him to pass away. They performed an emergency caesarean

section at 23:03 on 14 June 2017. He was stillborn.

88. I was also told that I had been in a critical condition after the fire and there was a fifty-

fifty chance of survival as they were not sure if they would be able to clean my blood of

the poisons and the toxins.

89. I was in hospital for 15 days.

90. We buried our baby son on 19 July 2017 in a small white coffin. I cannot start to explain

the grief we all felt.

91. I continue to suffer from psychological injuries. I am at present trying to manage this

myself as I want to be there for my children. I do not want to be stressed, especially as I

am now pregnant again.

Housing

92. I was initially housed in a studio flat by the Kings College Hospital after being discharged

from their emergency care.

112. Both of my daughters had been placed into induced comas and were still in hospital after I

was discharged, Marcio and I took it in turns to stay at the hospital and look after them.

suffered from smoke inhalation and cyanide poisoning. She was discharged after


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approximately 10 days. was treated for smoke inhalation and cyanide poisoning

and she was discharged after 3 'A weeks.

93. The hospital staff arranged our initial accommodation as the RBKC wanted us to go and

stay in a hotel in Earls Court, which was on the other side of London. We were not

prepared to stay in Earls Court whilst our children were still in hospital at Kings College,

and especially having just gone through what we had gone through. It was an insensitive

suggestion.

94 Marcio and I had to stay with sharing the care duties, at all times to calm her

down as she was shaking sporadically in her sleep and I believe she was having

nightmares. She was talking in her sleep and would shake her leg and say let go'. I

believe she was referring to people grabbing at her anldes while walking down the

stairwell at Grenfell as she had never had any nightmares or worries like that before.

When she came out of the coma, she told me that someone had grabbed her calf when we

were coming down the stairs.

95.

96. We had several problems with the RBKC arranging our temporary accommodation.

Christmas was coming up and the girls kept saying that they did not want to spend

Christmas in a hotel. My eldest daughter was getting especially stressed about it.

97. I told the RBKC that I would go and have a look for temporary accommodation myself as

the two properties our housing officer considered to be suitable did not suit our needs.

They were not suitable for a family.

98. We were desperate to get out of the hotel and I even told my housing officer that she

could show us properties with just two bedrooms as we knew it would only be temporary.


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99. My housing officer was unable to help or was just not very helpful, so I decided to go to

an estate agent myself to find a temporary property. I managed to find a suitable property

immediately.

100. If I had left our accommodation needs with the RBKC, we would have ended up spending

our Christmas in a hotel. They did not seem to care or did not seem to be competent

101. The girls were very excited about not having to spend Christmas in a hotel. However,

when it got to the day when we should have received the keys, there were several delays

and obstacles put up by the RBKC in relation to making payment. We waited

approximately 8 days before we were given the keys to our new accommodation. It was

only sorted out by the RBKC when we had threatened to them that we would go to the

press.

I nitial support

102. In the days following the fire we were all in hospital and no one from the RBKC or the

TMO tried to contact us to enquire about our health, wellbeing and/or our whereabouts.

They did not even know we were in hospital. It was only when Marcio spoke to another

resident in the Tower who contacted the RBKC and informed them that we were in

hospital that they knew about us

103. The staff at the hospital were the only people who asked us if we needed counselling.

They also arranged our accommodation near the hospital while the girls were still being

treated. They were the only people who provided us with initial help and support. They

were excellent, and had done everything to get us back to health.

104. Even after we were discharged from hospital, the only way we came to know that the

RBKC were at the Westway' was from other residents who had contacted us. If our

friends and neighbours had not contacted us, we would not have known what support was

available to us and where to get it.


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105. We were allocated a key worker/social worker but the person changed on three occasions

during the process. It was really unsettling given our circumstances as we had to explain

everything over and over again to each key worker/social worker.

106. Even with the key workers and social works in place, a lot of the time they did not know

what help they could provide to us. We had to ask them to look into things for us and we

got more feedback based on what we were being told by other residents from the Tower.

It just felt as though they were not forthcoming with information or advice about how they

could help us. It was completely unorganised.

107. The initial support from the REIKC was really poor, and this made things worse in a time

of distress.

The months folloving the fire

108. I feel like I have been let down at every stage of the process by both the RBKC and the

TMO.

109. For example, I received a letter from the TMO after the fire requesting to read the gas

meter at my flat. This was very insensitive to someone who had suffered a bereavement,

and whose children had been injured and traumatised. We had lost everything.

110. Life has been very hard since the fire. For a long time the whole situation and the events

during and after the fire have felt very surreal. However, I feel as though I am now slowly

accepting what happened.

111. I have learnt to control my anxiety and the bad thoughts. This has made it easier for me to

fall asleep and I am now sleeping better, as I had insomnia for a few days after I was

discharged from hospital. I was unable to sleep properly for the first three months; this

was the e toughest time. I was having nightmares, I was waking up in the early hours of

the morning and not falling asleep, every night I was trying to fall asleep without reliving

the night of the fire. I still suffer from this but I find ways to distract myself. In order to


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sleep, I force myself to stay awake until my body gives in. I also now need to have noise

in the background to fall asleep as I find the quiet really hard.

112. After I have become pregnant, I have more going on and more distractions, I am now

worried about my baby girl and worry about her wellbeing and whether there will be any

complications. This is due to the shock my body experienced with the caesarean. I am also

worried about passing the stress I am under to her.

1 13. My main priority after the fire was for my girls to be better. I have not sought any

treatment for my psychological injuries and I will only consider doing this and once my

girls are better. I feel that I need to be there for them, as the priority.

114. The Grenfell Tower fire was the worst experience of my life. It has been very stressful

and I have been suffering from anxiety, sleepless nights and low self-esteem. It has also

been difficult to witness the effect the fire has had on my family.

115. Marcio does not sleep properly anymore and is also suffering from stress, as he has had to

deal with everything. Marcio was in hospital for 2 to 3 days during which time he was

treated for smoke inhalation.

116. has become extremely emotional and she has had to go through counselling,

which has been difficult. She has not been herself since the fire. She also feels distraught

about losing Lili, our dog. had passed out when she was coming out of the

building and she was in and out of consciousness until we got to the hospital. She was also

put into an induced coma and was in hospital for up to 2 weeks after the fire.

1 17. has not been herself since the fire; she has not been able to deal with her

emotions and the tragedy of her friends who passed away in the Tower, especially, our

neighbours at flat 182, the el-Wahabi family.

118. was also in an induced coma and was in hospital for 3 to 4 weeks. She suffers

from asthma and they had injected various drugs into her body to try and clean her lungs


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as best as they could and Marcio was told that she was in a critical condition.

now has a stronger asthma pump as a result.

119. and are case studies for the respiratory team at the Kings College

Hospital as they have never come across a case of a children who has suffered such severe

smoke inhalation and poisoning, and are still alive. The hospital are therefore monitoring

the girls every six months as they do know what the future impact of the inhalation of the

smoke and cyanide will have on their long-term health.

120. The biggest impact on us all was the loss of our baby son, L[ogan], after a pregnancy of 7

months. L[ogan's] still birth was caused by my inhalation of the smoke, chemical fumes

and toxins.

121. We as a family we have become closer as we have not really had help from anyone else.

The only help we have received is in relation to our health. We have received no

assistance from the authorities, otherwise.

122. It was up to Marcio and I to deal with our feelings and the mental welfare of our

daughters. We had to seek help for donations, clothes, as we lost everything. We had to

ask around and go to different places to get information regarding our housing options. No

one came to help us, even though we were in the hospital every day. We had to ask for

help when it should have been offered. The RBKC and the TMO did not even know that

we were in hospital until weeks later. It seems that they had just assumed we were safe at

a friend's house. They had not tried to contact us. It was like they did not care.

Statement of Truth

I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true. I confirm that I am willing that

the statement forms part of the evidence before the Inquiry, and may be published on the

Inquiry's website, save for redactions indicated in the text, and those applied by the Inquiry.

itcterC /9(e.14


IWS00000349_0020

Signed:

Andreia Perestrelo

Dated: 20 May 2018


IWS00000349_0021

Documents

Statement No.: I Dated: 20 May 2018 THE GRENFELL TOWER ...... · 11. My full name is Andreia Perestrelo, I was formally a resident of Grenfell Tower, and have now been permanently