Residents stuck in limbo after blocks found to be unsafe

Residents facing an order to leave two Merseyside tower blocks after the buildings were deemed unsafe say they are now stuck in limbo.

- Raphael Boyd

Fire chiefs made Beech Rise and Willow Rise, which stand beside each other in Kirkby, the subject of a prohibition notice in May.

Their inhabitants, who number in their hundreds, have been allowed to stay temporarily thanks to a 24-hour "waking watch" carried out by trained personnel.

However, the watch is expected to end any day, so residents do not know how much time they have left. Staying on would be illegal.

The situation is the latest evidence of the poor conditions inflicted on some private tenants.

Apart from the occasional sign of life, the Kirkby towers already look abandoned, with large puddles of water coming from behind locked doors, pipes hanging through holes in the ceiling and rubbish piling up in the hallways.

Neither building has had a working lift for the past year and residents have complained that the combination of constant leaks and bad wiring constitutes a fire risk. As a result, some flats were cut off, leaving them without power or water for months.