Merrick Cockell
Leader of the Council
Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea
Town Hall
Horton Street
London W8

Dear Cllr Cockell

24 hours after my notification yesterday regarding the fact that the central heating was on during this life threatening hot weather, the central heating remains on at the Lancaster West Estate.

The floor is hot where the central heating pipes come into the flat at the hall and are also so noted in the living room.  The bedroom radiator pipes up to its valve are quite hot.  The valve is off, but the radiator metal is warm due to conduction.  The same is true for all the other radiatiors in the flat.

For the seventh consecutive day the temperature inside the flat remains at extraordinarily high levels which are life threatening.  A news report on BBC One last night in the 1800 news indcated that a temperature of 42C is potentially life threatening depending upon the body's heat dissipation mechanism.

If this mechanism fails, the break down at this point can result in a rapid death.  I suspect this is Estate wide and subjects many vulnerable people in its 900 units to such health hazard and potential life threatening temperatures.

Tenants also pay for the heat and hot water fuel oil expense including the unnecessry central heating left on all summer.  This has been my experience now for several years.  While the cost to tenants is an important matter, the threat to health and life itself are of far greater concern at present.

I submit that this constitutes an emergency at present.  While there will be some reduction in future days to slightly lower temperatures, there will remain the possibility that similar hot temperatures could return at anytime in August.  The temperature is anticipated to reach highs of at least 25C to 26C through Saturday.

On Wednesday last, 6th August 2003, I began a comprehensive letter to the TMO Chief Executive in response to an unsatisfactory response letter I received on that date.  This was the first recent date of near record temperatures when the old all time record was expected to be eclipsed which finally occurred on Sunday last.

I have not been able to finish this letter since I have been incapacitated and debilitated by the heat in conjunction with all else that I am being subjected to which is the subject of this letter.

Instead, I have concentrated on taking care of myself to make certain that the excessive heat due to the central heating which remains on does not cause me serious problems.

I must do this since I had cataract surgery on my second, left eye two weeks ago Monday last, on 28th July 2003.  I've been using medication and must maintain proper body functioning throughout this period to ensure that the healing process and medication works properly.  You were notified about this forthcoming surgery in advance.

It is imperative that I remain as inactive as possible while drinking some four litres of water a day and maintaining body salt levels.  Black jogging trousers were white streaked from waist to cuff from the loss of body salts due to excessive perspiration as my body tried to keep its temperature control mechanism functioning properly.  This occurred Wednesday last providing a warning for me which I have heeded.

It is unconsiconable that the central heating had not been centrally turned off as it has been in the distant past immediately following my correspondence of yesterday.

I will deal with this issue along with all those I was putting into my interrupted correspondence which I started on Wednesday, 6th August 2003. In the meantime, I urge you to make certain that the Council turns off the cental heating for the Lancaster West Estate forthwith in order to protect the lives of vulnerable tenants in this extraordinary heat wave.

Yours sincerely

/s/ Gary D Chance

Gary D Chance
Tuesday, 12th August 2003