Ceiling collapse has ruined all my belongings

TENANT 'WAS LEFT TO CLEAN UP MESS HERSELF'

- By EVELINA BLACK

Laura Naylor surveys the damage to her flat

A WOMAN who had to leave her flat after part of her living room ceiling collapsed claims she has been left to clear up the mess herself.

Laura Naylor is a long term tenant of Onward Homes and has been living in her home in the Georgian Quarter since 1998. She told the ECHO how she returned home on the evening of January 29 to find part of her living room ceiling had collapsed. She reported the issue to the Onward Homes emergency line and it was arranged for her to stay in temporary accommodation overnight.

Laura said: "The plaster that fell is horsehair plaster so it's very heavy. The whole of the property is covered in thick black dust and a lot of my belongings are broken. My TV was knocked over and there's broken glass, broken handmade ceramics and broken plant pots.

"When I was decanted into a hotel the night it happened, I was told someone would call me the next morning, which didn't happen. While I was waiting for the call, I had to check out of the hotel and go back to my flat. I had to hide in my bedroom because I didn't know what to do and I didn't know if the plaster had asbestos in it. It was a huge health and safety issue.