Do not go in... you're putting your life and the lives of your family at risk

EXTREME DANGER AS VANDALS DISTURB ASBESTOS

- By GARETH LIGHTFOOT

IT is an utter wreck. A tangled chaos of ripped-out pipes, wires, cables and panels. Fixtures and fittings hang from ceilings or are strewn across floors littered with bits of broken furniture. Charring from an arson attack is also visible on the walls.

So far, the Golden Eagle has been seen mainly as an “eyesore” or “carbuncle” from the outside.

That’s nothing compared to what it’s like inside the seven-storey building in Thornaby, as shocking photos reveal.

Now, council bosses say attacks on the former hotel on Trenchard Avenue have had far-reaching consequences, contaminating the entire building with asbestos and possibly endangering the culprits’ lives.

They say criminal damage, arson, theft, antisocial behaviour and flooding have set back the expected completion of the complex demolition job from spring to autumn next year, as only specialists are allowed inside the building wearing protective gear including hazmat suits.

Local MP Andy McDonald has said the vandals risked exposing themselves to lethal fibres which could lead to mesothelioma, a type of cancer, in the future.

Council leaders have repeated the warning, now graver than ever: “Do not go in.”

“I was very angry but I was actually quite worried for the people who did it, and for their families,” Councillor Richard Eglington, Stockton Council's cabinet member for regeneration and housing, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

“It’s a toxic building currently. They've caused more asbestos to be taken into the air.

“Hopefully the asbestos hasn't affected them. But the effects of it may not be known for a number of years. If they do feel unwell they need to seek medical attention.