The owner of the company which produces the fridge believed to have started the Grenfell Tower fire has claimed the blaze may have been sparked by a lit cigarette, an inquiry heard.
A closing statement to the public inquiry from Whirlpool Corporation, the owner of the Hotpoint brand, is said to argue that its appliance may not have been responsible.
Instead, it reportedly speculates whether the blaze may have begun “by someone throwing something – perhaps a burning cigarette – into the kitchen through the open window”.
An expert previously concluded that the fire, which led to 72 deaths, probably started in the Hotpoint FF175BP in the kitchen of Flat 16 on the block’s fourth floor.
Rajiv Menon QC, who represents the tenant of Flat 16, revealed details of Whirlpool’s statement – allegedly circulated among lawyers – in his own closing address to the inquiry on Tuesday.
He called for Sir Martin Moore-Bick to “unequivocally” clear Behailu Kebede, 45, of any responsibility for the tragedy.
“As far as the theory of the fire having started as a result of something being thrown through the open window is concerned, this is pure speculation, desperate to put it politely,” he continued.
“There is no evidence in support, it would have been impossible for a cigarette or some other mystery item to have been launched from ground level four floors down and it is equally impossible to imagine how a cigarette or some other mystery item discarded from a flat above could have miraculously entered the kitchen through the open window, let alone set anything in the vicinity alight.”
Mr Menon said the suggestion was a “transparent attempt by a multinational corporation to try to avoid liability and minimise reputational damage and financial loss”.
Sir Martin must conclude the fire started in the fridge-freezer, he urged, so that “as a society we can try to regulate in the interest of public safety”.
He continued: “The inquiry must set the record straight and unequivocally declare Mr Kebede bears no responsibility indirectly or directly for the outbreak of fire in his kitchen, its spread and its fatal consequences.”
The inquiry is currently hearing closing statements from lawyers representing the bereaved, survivors, and organisations involved with the tower.
A spokesman for Whirlpool said: “We are committed to assisting the Grenfell Tower inquiry in any way we can as it continues to investigate all the potential origins and causes of the fire and how it spread.
“Separately, we would like to reassure owners of these products that they are safe and they can continue to use them as normal.
“Two separate investigations have been carried out into this model of fridge freezer –one by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), and another by Whirlpool.
“Both investigations independently found no evidence of any fault with this model and confirmed that it fully complied with all safety requirements.
“These conclusions have also been verified by the Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser.”
