Thousands of Britons could face evacuation from their high-rise apartments after 27 buildings around the country failed fire-safety checks in the wake of the Grenfell Tower blaze.

The results of the checks in London, Manchester, Plymouth and Portsmouth were announced Saturday after hundreds of apartments were evacuated a day earlier in the north London borough of Camden.

The 27 buildings that failed the checks used the same external cladding as Grenfell, a 24-story public-housing tower in West London that caught fire June 14, leaving 79 people dead.

The Grenfell blaze, which is believed to have intensified and spread quickly, was sparked by a Hotpoint refrigerator.

Appliance maker Whirlpool said the type at fault is not sold in the United States.

With Post Wire Services