Grenfell victims were dead or unconscious before the flames reached them, an investigation found

In the final report on the fire, chairman Sir Martin Moore-Bick made some observations on the cause of death of the 72 victims, in the hope that these would assist the coroner.

The report found that all victims of the fire were dead or unconscious due to “inhalation of asphyxiating gases,” primarily carbon monoxide.

Five other people were also killed in the disaster, including three who jumped from the tower, stillborn baby Logan Gomes and 74-year-old Maria del Pilar Burton, who died in January 2018.

According to Sir Martin, expert reports indicate that it was possible to descend the tower's stairs “without danger of collapse” until 1:49 a.m. After that, it was still possible but “more dangerous due to the thick smoke and lack of visibility.”

“In view of the evidence of Professor (David) Purser, we consider it likely that those who died in the tower, after leaving their apartments, inhaled most of the carbon monoxide which killed them while descending the stairs,” the report said.

“Those who did not survive the journey down the stairs had inhaled a significant amount of asphyxiating gases in their apartments and before entering the stairs.”

The report goes on to say that the “key difference” between the survivors and the dead is that “the survivors left the houses before the fire spread to the outside of their homes or the rooms in which they had sought shelter.”

She concluded that “all of the dead were in a coma and in most cases were already dead before being exposed to high heat.”

“The severe burns to the bodies probably occurred in all cases sometime after death, as the fire entered the apartments and consumed the combustible contents,” the report continues.