I lost my whole apartment in Storm Eunice

RESIDENT LEFT HOMELESS AFTER ROOF COLLAPSE

-  NICOLE WOOTTON-CANE

AN APARTMENT block has had a partially collapsed roof for nearly nine months and residents face a £300,000 bill to fix it after being told they're not insured.

Residents of 24 flats at the Orban apartments in Whalley Range have lived with the damage covered by tarp and plastic since February 19, when Storm Eunice 'ripped off' sections of the roof.

The damage left two flats uninhabitable and exposed a number of others to water damage.

Elizabeth Winstantley bought her flat in 2018 and spent thousands renovating it. She was left homeless because her top floor flat was so badly damaged by the roof's collapse. She is desperate to return home, but nearly nine months after the storm remains in temporary accommodation because work on permanent repairs has not begun.

Surveyor reports carried out in the months since the storm have revealed the roof was built with an 'inherent defect, which means leaseholders are unable to claim insurance and will have to pay for the repairs themselves. Quotes for the repairs are around £290,000.

Two-bed apartments at the Orban apartments have been marketed at £150,000 to buy, and £950 a month to rent. They are managed by Firstport property management services, who told the M.E.N. they are working to ensure that an appropriate permanent solution is put in place as soon as possible.

But for Elizabeth, the damage has been done. Her flat is uninhabitable, covered in mould, and still isolated from electricity - as it has been since the storm.

She has no savings left after eight months of living a 'nightmare, and said she has been left 'distraught' by the situation.

"I've lost my whole apartment," Elizabeth told the M.E.N. "I'm at a loss, I don't know what to do. I can't tell you how awful it is to not have a space of your own, and just feeling utterly powerless. This was my first home, everything I had went into it.