Lucky escape after Wiltshire building collapses during demolition.
The building is being demolished to make way for a number of shops. Although no one was injured in the incident, workmen said “death or maiming” was only averted by the safety scaffolding, which contained the wall and held up under the intense pressure.
The scaffolding was held up, in part, by a lamp post which was bent during the incident. “That scaffolding has saved lives,” said Cliff Flanagan, from Skanska Paving. “If it wasn’t for the strength of it all that debris would be in the street where people were walking.”
The contractors, Sisk UK, said the company had been conducting “controlled demolition” during the collapse.
Ian Wright, the company’s national business development manager, said: “The part of the building, a roof slab, that came off was to come down in a controlled way, but it came down unexpectedly. The cladding did its job and contained what had fallen. The HSE has been working with our team today. We will be investigating and working overnight to make it safe.”
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