Timeline of London tower block fire: How the disaster unfolded

At least 12 people have died, and more casualties are expected, after a fire tore through a London tower block in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The cause of the fire is not yet clear but there will be an investigation into the blaze which engulfed and destroyed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in North Kensington.

Here is a timeline of the key events of the deadly fire:

12.50am - A neighbour wakes up resident Maryam Adam, 41, saying his fourth-floor flat is on fire.

12.54am - London Fire Brigade receive the first of "multiple" 999 calls.

1am - The first fire crews arrive to be faced with a "rapidly developing and incredibly complex" fire at the 24-storey building.

1.16am - Police begin evacuating residents after being called to the scene at the Lancaster West Estate and officers confirm "a number of people" have been injured.

1.29am - London Ambulance Service receive reports of the fire and send 20 ambulance crews and a hazardous response team.

1.41am - A picture of the fire is posted on social media by Twitter user Fabio Bebber, with the caption: "Fire consuming Grenfell Tower. People screaming for their lives. Horrible."

1.46am - Video footage shared on Twitter shows the fire has spread to both sides of the building and the night sky is illuminated orange.

2.34am - Tweets suggest someone has been seen on the top floor using a flashlight to draw attention

2.49am - London Fire Brigade confirm 200 firefighters have been called to the blaze.

4.43am - As the sun rises in London smoke can be seen pouring into the morning sky. Reports emerge of witnesses saying they have seen people throwing children from the burning tower block while others have reportedly tied bedsheets together to climb down.

6.15am - London Ambulance Service confirm 30 patients have been taken to five hospitals.

7.50am - London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton confirms there have been a "number of fatalities" at the fire.

8.15am - London Ambulance Service revise the number of patients taken to hospital to more than 50.

11.16am - Police confirm six people have died but say that figure is expected to rise.

11.45am - London Ambulance Service say 64 patients have been taken to hospital and that 20 are in critical care. A further 10 people are reported to have made their own way to hospital.

11.59am - Construction firm Rydon, which completed a refurbishment of Grenfell Tower in 2016, says it is "shocked to hear of the devastating fire".

5.00pm - The police confirm that the death toll has increased to 12 and warn the recovery operation will be "long and complex".

8.22pm - Prime Minister Theresa May says there will be a "proper investigation" following the fire, adding: "If there are any lessons to be learned they will be, and action will be taken."