The fire has left three people in a life-threatening condition (Picture: Helen William/PA Wire)
Screams were heard down an east London street after a suspected arson attack on restaurant Indian Aroma.
Three people are in a life-threatening condition after the blaze ripped through the eatery’s ground floor in Woodford Avenue,Ilford last night.
Five people were trapped inside the restaurant,while nine others escaped before firefighters arrived.
One witness saw a man whose whole body was burnt and skin was ‘peeling off’.
Hospital porter Edward Thawe,43,left his nearby home with his 12-year-old son after hearing the shrieks from the restaurant.
The police and ambulance were already at the ‘horrible’ scene,which the dad said was ‘more than scary and the sort of thing that you don’t want to look at twice’.
He added: ‘I heard screaming and people saying they had called the police. I came outside (the shop) and there was a man with his skin peeled off.
The fire ripped through the restaurant’s ground floor (Picture: Helen William/PA Wire)
‘His skin was burnt. I did not want to look at it.’
Sayed Bokhari,39,said he had spoken to the manager of the restaurant,adding: ‘He was crying. He was very shocked. He was really crying. He was extremely scared.”
Mr Bokhari said: ‘It’s awful and it’s very scary.
‘It looked like a scene from Halloween. It was a serious,dramatic thing and people were running around him,” he said,referring to the injured man.
Mr Bokhari,who has run a business in the area for 15 years,said: ‘It is scary because we run retail stores which are welcoming customers in.
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Nine managed to get out of the restaurant before firefighters arrived (Picture: UKNIP)
‘The doors are open like the doors of your house. We cannot body check everyone to see if they are safe. There is only so much that high street security can do.
‘It is scary. You are worried for people. You are worried about your business.
‘London is not such a fun place any more.’
Fire crews were called at 9pm and wore breathing apparatus to rescue the group.
The five were rushed to hospital for burns and smoke inhalation,with two going to a major trauma centre.
Uniformed officers guarded the police cordon that was in place on Saturday as forensic officers in protective clothing examined the scene.
The taped cordon stretched from outside the shop,which faces on to a busy main road and on to the pavement.
A trail of what appeared to be bloody footprints along the pavement was spotted by a forensic officer.
The cause of the blaze is being investigated by firefighters and the Metropolitan Police.
Detective Chief Inspector Mark Rogers,of the Met’s Central Specialist Crime North unit,said: ‘We understand this incident will cause concern within the community. My team of specialist detectives are working at speed to piece the incident together.
‘Locals can expect to see a large police presence in the area. If you have any concerns,please speak to those officers on the ground.’
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: ‘We were called at 9.04pm yesterday to reports of a fire on Woodford Avenue,Ilford.
‘We sent resources to the scene,including ambulance crews,an advanced paramedic,an incident response officer and paramedics from our hazardous area response team. We also dispatched a trauma team in a car from London’s Air Ambulance.
‘We treated five people for burns and smoke inhalation. We took two patients to a major trauma centre and three others to local hospitals.’
The cause of the blaze is being investigated (Picture: UKNIP)
A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: ‘We were called at 9.02pm to reports of a fire at a restaurant on Woodford Avenue in Gants Hill.
‘Part of the ground floor restaurant was damaged by fire. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus rescued five people from the restaurant. They were all taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service. Around nine further people were able to leave the restaurant before firefighters arrived.
‘The brigade’s control officers received seven calls about the fire and mobilised crews from Ilford,Hainault,Leytonstone and Woodford fire stations to the scene. The fire was extinguished by 10.32pm.
‘The cause of the fire is being investigated by the brigade and the Metropolitan Police Service.”
Local MP Wes Streeting,who is also the Health Secretary,posted on X saying: ‘Huge thanks to @metpoliceuk @londonfire @Ldn_Ambulance for their response to a serious incident on Gants Hill/Woodford Avenue this evening.
‘Please avoid the area for now. Further updates will follow from @RedbridgeLive and emergency services.’
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