Faced with mounting criticism, British PM visits London fire victims

• British PM fights for survival ahead of Brexit talks
• At least 19 killed in blast at Ariana Grande concert in British arena
• British PM May to fire starting gun on Brexit

Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn, London mayor Sadiq Khan, Prince William and Queen Elizabeth, 91, have visited residents from the 24-storey block destroyed on Wednesday as many slept, with anger at the authorities growing in the local community.

May has been criticized from within her own Conservative Party over her response and she pledged on Thursday to hold a public inquiry into the fire at the social housing block which was home to about 600 people. The toll is expected to rise.

Firefighters use a hydraulic lift to inspect the Grenfell Tower block that was destroyed by fire, in north Kensington, West London, Britain June 16, 2017. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

May met victims privately at a central London hospital on Friday and had expressed her sorrow on television on Thursday after meeting emergency services personnel.

"She should have been there with the residents. You have to be prepared to receive people's emotions, and not be so frightened about people," former Conservative cabinet minister Michael Portillo told the BBC.

May's response has been contrasted with that of Corbyn, who hugged locals at the estate during his visit on Thursday, and the royals who met residents and volunteers on Friday.

TERRIBLE

"That's one of the most terrible things I have ever seen," Prince William said of the fire which left the tower block a blackened shell.

Some desperate residents pleaded to speak to the royals about their plight and the fate of missing children as they left the site, with William promising he would return.

There has been growing fury at the low-rent estate where residents wanted answers on why the fire was able to spread so rapidly and why complaints about safety had been ignored.

London police said an investigation, led by a detective from its homicide and major crime unit, would examine whether criminal offences had been committed although they said there was nothing to suggest the fire was started deliberately.

Commander Stuart Cundy said they had been able to remove the remains of only 12 victims from the building.

"Sadly, it is expected that the total will rise and it is not expected that any survivors will be found," he said. Police have said it could take months to search the building and some victims might never be identified.

Locals were expected to stage a march in Kensington, where social housing tenants live cheek by jowl with billionaires in one of Europe's richest districts, from 3 p.m. (10.00 a.m. ET) while a rally to demand justice for the victims was due to start in the government district of Westminster at 1700 GMT.

While the disaster has prompted an outpouring of generosity, there was also anger at politicians as the charred tower was cast as a deadly symbol of a divided society.