‘Flats won’t have to be demolished’

12:38pm Tuesday 11th November 2008

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THE building contractor for the luxury apartments that dramatically collapsed in Mudeford at the weekend has played down claims the flats will have to be demolished.

The roof of two of the four-storey homes on the multi-million pound Iridium development, at the newly refurbished Christchurch Harbour Hotel, formerly the Avonmouth Hotel, collapsed into the lower floors on Saturday afternoon taking the scaffolding with it.

A team of sub-contractors who were in the building at the time managed to escape uninjured.

The Health and Safety Executive and independent investigators visited the site on Monday to begin an inquiry into the cause of the incident.

Scaffolders were called to the site late on Saturday morning to shore up the wall, but it collapsed shortly afterwards.

Everett Jones, who lives in Falcon Drive near to the hotel, said: “We heard the rumbling from the Quay on Saturday and came down to see what was going on.

“Judging by what has happened, I am sure some more of the building will fall before it is pulled down.

“Since the building started it has caused local residents so many problems, with the roads being closed and the noise.

“The repercussions from this will be massive.”

He added: “One thing people in Mudeford are grateful for is that fact that it fell when the place was not teeming with people, so thankfully there were no injuries.”

Midas Group, which has been building there for over a year, said the five people who were in the building when it collapsed were sub-contractors, not Midas staff.

A spokesperson said: “It is pure speculation that the building will have to be demolished. We cannot elaborate any further at the moment but stand by our original statement.”

The statement said: “Midas Construction are the principal contractor on the Iridium Development in Christchurch. An isolated part of the development site was the subject of structural movement to one dwelling over the weekend.

“In conjunction with the relevant authorities, Midas are investigating this incident.

“Midas’s first priority is safety and as a precautionary measure, work on site has been temporarily suspended and the adjacent road closed.”

The site was expected to reopen on Tuesday.