A volunteer has spoken out about his experience responding to the London Bridge and Finsbury Park Mosque terrorist attacks and the Grenfell Tower fire.

Laszlo Kelemen, an emergency response volunteer for the Red Cross, said he was struck by the outpouring of support for the people affected by the tragedies.

The 33-year-old of Walthamstow was speaking at a Parliamentary reception at the House of Commons on Tuesday, July 10, to mark one of the busiest years for the humanitarian charity since WWII.

Laszlo joined the Red Cross team at the Westway Sports Centre in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire.

“The people I met wanted to talk about what had happened, how it had happened, what they saw, and where they were at the time,” he recalled.

“Speaking to someone about these things can make a real difference in the way they cope in the long term.

“I remember seeing to a man standing alone in the dark very late at night. He came and lit a candle by the memorial wall and I went over to speak to him.

“He explained to me that his uncle was missing in the fire and presumed dead, and he thanked me for what we were doing. Being a Red Cross volunteer means being there for people during those very difficult moments.”

Iain Duncan Smith, MP for Chingford and Woodford Green, joined MPs from across the political spectrum in backing the charity and pledging to follow their lead by doing their own act of kindness.

In 2017, the Red Cross assisted 9,265 people in more than 1,500 emergencies across the UK.

Laszlo, who works at Whipps Cross Hospital in Leytonstone as an intensive care practitioner, had just finished a night shift at the Grenfell rest centre on June 19, when he received an alert about the Finsbury Park Mosque attack.

He headed straight there, and helped support the bereaved family of the victim.

“There was very sombre atmosphere, and a lot of confusion,” he remembers.

“I remember the helicopters and the blue flashing police lights. We made the space quiet for the family so that they could begin to process what has happened. We helped by providing cups of tea and an ear to listen.”

Looking back over 2017, Laszlo admits there were “a very difficult and unprecedented few months” but says he is proud to work in a team offering compassion and kindness.

His dream is to become a paramedic with the London ambulance service and he believes his volunteering work with the Red Cross make him feel like he is part of the London community.

He added: “Before last summer I felt like someone who just lived in London, but now feel like I’m a real Londoner.

“I now feel that I’m part of this city because I was able to help. I’ve experienced its very worst but also its best.

“When devastation happened communities across London united. That’s the real feeling of London and being part of that was the proudest moment of my life.”