The only survivors from Grenfell Tower's top floor share their harrowing escape story

The public inquiry into the devastating fire at Grenfell Tower is to open today (14 September). It aims to examine the cause and spread of the fire, regulations of high-rise buildings and the actions of the local authority.

At least 80 people were killed in the blaze that began inside a fridge-freezer and soon engulfed much of the building.

No evidence will be heard on the opening day and an interim report is expected in Easter 2018.

Farhad Neda and his mother, Flora Neda, used to live on the top floor of Grenfell Tower. Of those who lived on the 23<sup>rd floor, they were the only survivors.

Speaking to Channel 4 News, the pair talked for the first time about what happened in the early hours of the 14 June.

Farhad's disabled mother said that she didn't want the "pain of burning alive" and instead opted to jump out of the window until Farhad grabbed her.

Farhad told his mother that they had to find a way out of the building, despite thinking that they were "100% dead that night".

There was so much smoke that it became impossible to see so he pulled Flora Neda over his shoulders so they didn't lose each other.

Flora and Farhad were reliant on their sense of touch to get out of the building.

Flora Neda said: "We couldn't see anyone for help. Just people who had fallen down the staircase."

Many of these people were dead or on the verge of dying as smoke choked the building.

The smoke was so intense that it wasn't safe to continue down the stairs, so they returned back upstairs. Behind a door they stumbled across an air pocket.

Just two to three feet high, the pair crouched on the ground to catch their breath.

Once they had caught their breath, they ran for it.

Feeling their way down the stairs, no idea of which floor they were on, they carried on navigating their way down through the thick acrid smoke.

It was when they reached the seventh floor that Farhad heard breathing masks being used by firefighters.

He said: "Even though I couldn't see, I just knew the fire brigade was there."

They continued to feel around until a hand landed on the chest of a firefighter. Farhad grabbed onto the firefighter and pulled them close, explaining what had happened.

The Neda family had lived inside Grenfell Tower for almost 20 years when the tragedy struck.

The pair were able to escape, but Farhad's father and Flora's husband, Saber, died in the flames has he attempted to help others. He was 57.

While they were still in the flat, Farhad said: "I shouted 'we have to go'. And we assumed that dad was behind us.

"Everybody that they would take out, I would go and see if it was my dad, but none of them were."

Flora, still unsure how she can live without her husband, said "the only thing I can make myself stronger is because of Farhad."

The inquiry is being led by Sir Martin Moore-Bick. He will give a 45-minute statement later today, which will be watched by survivors of the fire.