A disabled widow narrowly escaped injury when the gable end of her home collapsed, missing her ‘by inches’ – and she says the incident could have killed her grandchildren.
The collapse of the gable end of the property happened at an address in Hartlebury on Sunday night, the falling masonry narrowly missing the 65-year-old tenant who had popped outside.
The Platform Housing tenant, who does not wish to be identified, said she felt ‘distraught’ after the incident, which happened at around 8.43pm, describing an ‘explosion that sounded like glass bottles breaking’. They say the roof had only been repaired last year.
Platform provides temporary accommodation
She is now in temporary accommodation but says she has none of the disability aids, supplied by occupational therapy, she needs to help her day-to-day and no access to her clothes which remain at the property.
Meanwhile, her two bedroom semi-detached house is sealed off behind fire service tape after being declared unsafe.
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Her 29-year-old daughter, who has two children aged five and one, is her mum’s carer and regularly visits. She said the collapsed roof and wall was ‘about two inches’ from hitting her mum during the sudden and unexpected incident.
“If the collapsed wall had hit her, she would have been dead. My children and I had just left. Their toy box is in that room. If my children had been in there, they would have been dead. My mum is visibly shaken. The property has been declared unsafe. The bricks are still falling,” she said.
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The daughter of the tenant, who does not wish to be identified, had walked outside the property to put out washing shortly before part of the house gave way.
The collapse, which happened at 8.43 last night, damaged a neighbour’s car and led to the isolation of gas and electricity supplies.
A neighbour said more debris was still falling late into the night.
The family said Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service had told them that no one can enter the site until a full structural assessment has been completed.
We have approached Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service for comment.
Marion Duffy, Chief Operations Officer at Platform Housing Group confirmed that they are aware of the incident at a property.
She added: “Our priority is the safety and wellbeing of our customer. We responded immediately and have been working with our teams and the emergency services to assess the situation and ensure the property is safe.
“A Platform surveyor is attending the property today and we are arranging for a structural engineer to carry out a full assessment. Our insurers have also been notified. Once it is confirmed that the site is safe to access, we will begin the necessary clearance and any further remedial works.
“We will continue to support our customer throughout and work closely with all relevant agencies as the investigation progresses.”
