Judge 'humbled' by 'love that shone through' Grenfell fire tributes  

Bernadette Bernard, whose brother Moses died in the fire, accompanied by a friend Jackie Ledger, Zoe-Ann Bernard and her partner Michael Myers, leave the commemoration hearings at the Grenfell Tower Inquiry
Bernadette Bernard, pictured second left with family and friends, paid tribute to her brother Raymond, a 'modern day Moses"' Credit:  HENRY NICHOLLS/ REUTERS

"Love has shone through" the tributes to the 72 victims of the Grenfell fire, the High Court judge leading the inquiry has said as he vowed to find answers for the families. 

Sir Martin Moore-Bick, said that he was "humbled" and moved by the seven days of commemorations to the 72 victims as he paid tribute to the strength and dignity of those who had come forward to remember.  

"It is the love that has shone through each of these memorials that has made this past few days so profoundly affecting," he told the hushed room. 

Sir Martin, bringing proceedings to a close before evidence begins next Monday, vowed to give the families the truth and answers that they have repeatedly begged him for.  

The final day of commemorations included a tribute to Raymond "Moses" Bernard, who offered neighbours including Deborah Lamprell, Jessica Urbano (Ramirez), Berkti Haftom and her son Biruk Haftom and Hamid Kani not only refuge in his home but gave them his bed as he sat on the floor.

Bernadette Bernard, fighting back tears, said the biblical connotations of the 63-year-old's affectionate nickname Moses - who led the Israelites through the parted Red Sea to safety - was apt.

Raymond Bernard, 63, who died in the Grenfell Tower fire Credit: Metropolitan Police/PA

"My beloved Ray was my modern-day Moses, my hero," she said. "Ray always had a smile on his face. He knew how to love without expecting anything in return."

She added: "The positioning of Deborah, Jessica, Berkti and Biruk were on my brother's bed with my brother resting beside the bed on the floor," she said.

"This shows the respect he gave to those who lost their lives that night and we know that he would have given comfort to each of them before they took their last breaths and departed this world.

"Ray being a man and the strongest he was probably the last to die. He would have been so alone. We know from the details shared by the coroner that Ray was a hero on that tragic night."

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan was among those in the audience to hear the tribute, following criticism that politicians had been largely absent from the process.

The London Fire Brigade has also come under fire for their advice for residents to 'stay put' in their flats, which was only changed almost two hours after the first emergency call. 

Aldo Diana, 55, a fireman who rescued nine people and carried one survivor down at least 13 floors, has said that criticism of his colleagues is unfair as "firefighters like myself and many other firefighters that night went into the building and risked their own lives to save others."

Aldo Diana rescued nine people on the night of the Grenfell fire Credit: ITV

Mr Diana, who said he arrived after the 'stay put' advice was abandoned and therefore could not comment on it, told the BBC: ""We did what we could that night, the fire service and everybody else worked as hard as they could that night. Some of the guys I went in twice on that night I know guys who went in three times."

As the final tribute was paid to the inquiry to the Choucair family, three generations of whom died in the fire, proceedings were brought to a halt as a woman believed to be a relative began moaning and then was helped to the floor by officials. 

Everyone was asked to leave the room as she was attended by paramedics before being taken to a side room so proceedings could continue.

 It was the second time during the emotional seven days that someone listening to proceedings needed medical help. 

Counsellors have been on hand after experts raised concerns that it was like attending a funeral every day. Many of those who gave evidence were speaking publicly for first time, some about entire families that had been wiped out. 

Through tears, from both those speaking and those listening,  vivid portraits have been painted of those who lost their lives on June 14 last year. 

Rather than becoming accustomed to the grief, the survivors and families listening have grown more vocal in their support, the tentative clapping on the first day becoming a standing ovation for every tribute as the stories went into a second week. 

But alongside the sadness the anger - towards the authorities who ignored health and safety concerns, those responsible for the refurbishment which clad the tower block in combustible materials and at the fire brigade advice to stay in the building - has  never been far from the surface.  

The anger was often accompanied by frustration, with families expressing concern that the those living in the tower "didn't matter" before the fire and their pain was being ignored now. 

 Khadija Khaloufi's brother was unable to make it to the UK to pay tribute to her  Credit: PA

Karim Khaloufi, the younger brother of victim Khadija Khaloufi, was "very upset" that he was unable to attend the inquiry after suffering delays with his visa.

In a statement read by his solicitor Mr Khaloufi said: "Today it is nearly five months since I and my mother applied for a visa to the UK. "We had been led to believe that we could be in London for the inquiry, but now does not seem to be the case.

"No-one seems to care about our history or relationship to this case, or to care about our pain, our heartache or our desire for answers.

"I am now at a loss as to what I can do to defend my family's rights in this case and to represent my sister, who seems to have no representation."

The husband of a mother of five who died in the Grenfell Tower fire also missed the chance to pay tribute to her because his immigration application was refused.

Fatemah Afrasiabi, 59, was staying in flat 151 on the night of the fire with her older sister, Sakineh Afrasiabi, who lived on the 18th floor.