Imagine being rushed out of your house within minutes because the flames and black smoke from an inferno are approaching your property. 

You sense the urgency and grab whatever you can – pets, a bag, some clothes.

For some of the 300 residents of the village of Wennington, east London, this is exactly what happened on Tuesday afternoon, on the hottest day the UK has ever recorded.

They spent the night in makeshift respite centres – a leisure centre that had workout classes that morning, now a mass dorm room for displaced people.

While some people managed to get hotel rooms for the night, others spent the evening after their ordeal on blow-up mattresses and with sleeping bags.

Up to 20 families were affected by the house fires in Wennington, and some people we met were still in the clothes they had left their houses in.

After all, what do you grab when emergency services are telling you to get out of your house and flee?

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As they tried to get an ounce of sleep, the morning after their minds were swirling, desperately trying not to imagine the worst.

They were trying not to worry about the homes they’ve lived in for years full of belongings and memories not being there anymore.

No one could offer assurances yet, fire inspectors were spending much of the day assessing the damage to each property. Until they had answers, the residents just had to wait.

Twenty-four hours after they were evacuated, Wednesday evening provided the first opportunity to revisit their homes.

We watched as anxious residents were led onto two buses parked outside the leisure centre some were staying in.

They were brought to the site to see the damage for themselves.

A chance to finally see how much the fire took from them.

One of those on board was Olufunke Akinf who lives on The Green.

She revisited the house she’s lived in for 16 years. She recalls seeing charred grounds and destroyed homes.

While the structure of her home remains with severe smoke damage she says she feels lucky – but is distraught for her neighbours as their surrounding properties are gone.

She spoke of her shock to Sky News: “There’s a lot going on. I’m very upset. It’s now sinking in that this has happened. It’s like our world has been turned upside down.

“But emotionally, when we go back to your streets, and you see that, you know four houses next to yours are completely burned down. You know, the whole scene is very upsetting knowing your neighbours have lost everything.

“It’s very upsetting to me, 16 years of memories have just gone.”

After their visit to the site, some residents looked visibly upset and shaken by what they’d seen.

Others were relieved – “just some smoke damage” – one told us with an exhausted sigh.

Charlotte Spinks’s stables though are unrecognisable. Built in 2004, now the site is full of twisted and melted metal and covered in ash.

Her dad Brian Brazier managed to save the animals but got burnt in the process.

She spoke to Sky News after visiting the stables for the first time since the fire: “It is traumatising to look at our stables completely gone. It’s just devastating. We’ve lost the stables and people have lost their houses – everything is just really heartbreaking.”

Charlotte estimates the damage will cost £50,000 to repair. Carts, generations and equipment all destroyed.

“Literally everything is completely gone,” she said.

“I mean absolutely thousands of pounds worth of equipment that we use with our animals that we’ve had for years. You cannot replace it. But I can’t replace the lives of the animals or the lives of people so if that has to go first, then so be it.

“Honestly, I’d rather that we can rebuild. We get some support or whatever we can rebuild it.”

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A recurring thought many shared with me is that no lives were lost, some small relief perhaps, but one heartbroken resident had no choice but to leave behind her rabbits. Another spoke of the trauma his dog had felt from the incident.

It’s perhaps a reminder that trauma is embedded in this community.

But one certainty is that those who have lost their homes, won’t be alone.

They are surrounded by support, their neighbours and the community are rallying round them – the support will only grow.

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