Brighton man doesn’t feel safe in garden after building collapse

Phillip Kelly said the collapse of the building in Ryde Road, Brighton, on Sunday morning sounded like a “clap of thunder”.

Firefighters were called to the scene just after 8am this morning and stayed for two hours to ensure the public’s safety. No casualties were reported.

The building collpased this morning (Image: Eddie Mitchell) Mr Kelly, who has lived in Hartington Road, which is one road that forms a triangle around the collapsed building, for more than 45 years, said the structure looks “vulnerable”.

He has concerns about sitting in his out house at the bottom of his garden, near the collapsed building.

“As a local resident I’m rather concerned,” the 72-year-old said.

“The gable end and roof have parted, leaving the back of my garden and cabin vulnerable to further falls.

Phillip Kelly (Image: The Argus) “It is too risky for me to use the garden at this time. I hope to speak to building control tomorrow to get their assessment of the situation.”

Residents in Hartington Road described their shock at hearing a very loud noise when the building collapsed.

One neighbour believes he was the first to call the emergency services and met firefighters to show them where the building was.

The view from Mr Kelly’s home (Image: The Argus) “My dog was in the garden and came bolting in,” he said.

The man said he had heard a “loud long groaning sound”, similar, he said, to an aeroplane’s thrusters, and when he walked outside he saw that the roof had caved in.

“There was a massive plume of dust,” he said.

“It was quite devastating.”

One woman said the loud noise had frightened her daughter.

Residents in Carisbrooke Road, another road which overlooks the scene, said the building, made up of workshops, was old but that they were not expecting it to collapse.

“There was a really big noise in the morning,” one resident said.

“It was a shock.”

The building overlooks Mr Kelly’s out house (Image: The Argus) A passerby described the scene as looking like something out of a “disaster movie”.

“It’s a residential street but these look like old workshops,” he said.

“Someone said there had been someone living there until recently but not now. It sounded like an explosion when it happened.”

Engineers from gas network SGN had been called out initially by the fire service in case the collapse had been a gas explosion. Gas workers at the scene said since then it had been confirmed that it was a collapse but safety checks were carried out as a precaution.

A spokeswoman for East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said: “Three fire engines and three officers were in attendance at Ryde Road, Brighton, responding to a building collapse. Firefighters remained on scene between 8.04 and 10.15 to ensure public safety.”