In one night, Sara and Hassan’s lives were turned upside down. The couple were among those evacuated from the Mosaic Apartments on Slough High street when the top two floors went up in flames in August.
More than two months later, life is still far from normal. Still waiting to move back in, Sara and Hassan have been living out of hotels ever since – moving five times since the night they escaped the fire.
“We’d have to stay six days in one place, ten days in another one, four days in another one,” Hassan told the Observer. He added the situation was made all the more taxing because of a condition that requires him to use a wheelchair.
“I have days when I can’t get out of bed – I’m just too tired with all the moving around and eventually I just said I’m not fit enough to move around.
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“There are days when it’s okay and I can move about. But there are days when I can’t go down to breakfast and have to stay in bed all day because I need to rest. That would make things even worse.”
Eventually, Sara and Hassan were able to stay put in one hotel, near Heathrow, for a little longer. But that presented fresh challenges. The location isn’t the easiest place to get to without a car, being designed mainly for airport travellers and served by main roads with narrow pavements.
After a couple of journeys out – including one £50 short trip in an accessible taxi – Hassan spent the better part of four weeks inside the hotel.
Sara also found the situation began to feel ‘quite isolating’. Living out of hotels, even the simplest everyday task becomes much harder. If you want to wash your clothes or do some shopping, it’s a potentially long trip to a laundrette or supermarket.
There’s no kitchen in a hotel room, so it’s meals from the same dining room menu, day in day out. A hotel breakfast might be nice when you’re on holiday – but try living on it week after week.
“I was struggling to clean our clothes,” Sarah said. “I had to travel from this area near Heathrow to Windsor to the launderette.”
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The monotony of hotel living contrasts with the dramatic events of the night on 22 August, when the fire broke out shortly before midnight.
With a ‘stay put’ evacuation policy in place, there was no fire alarm. Sara and Hassan were only alerted by neighbours.
“People came and knocked on our door and that’s how we were aware that there was a fire,” Hassan says. “We found out later that was 45 minutes after the started.
“People were scared. When we got out and saw the fire on the top two floors it was a shock.”
Yet despite all they’ve been through Sara and Hassan continue to focus on the positive in every situation.
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Reluctant to complain about anything, they’re instead keen to emphasise how helpful and supportive everyone has been.
They’re grateful to the Mosaic building managers’ insurers and booking agency for always finding them accessible and suitable accommodation – even when it’s been difficult, or when it’s meant having to move.
They’re grateful to the council and its staff who looked after them in the hours after the fire.
And they’re grateful to the hotels that have made them welcome during their long stays. Even having access to the hotel garden was something Hasan could be thankful for when he couldn’t travel much further afield.
Although, as they point out – like all of Mosaic’s residents – they’ve little choice but to wait. The last they’ve heard, the building may not be safe to move back into until the end of November. but they don’t blame anyone for the length of time it’s taken.
“We do understand that this is something we’re all dealing with,” says Sara. “Some families have struggled – everyone has a different story to tell.
“You have a nice life, everything is okay, you have a nice, quiet routine. And then one night everything turns upside down.”
“I’d love to get back to my flat today,” adds Hassan. “But we need to be patient. We don’t have a choice.”
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