‘It’s appalling’: Fire service at Eastbourne ‘dangerous structure’ to make safe loose tiles left for almost five months

Simon Bolton, who lives in Canute Close, said he believes the tiles became loose following the storm in February.

The Eastbourne resident, who has lived in the town for 28 years, explained that he contacted housing association Optivo ‘not long after’ the storm and ‘numerous’ times after before getting the fire brigade involved.

Mr Bolton said he contacted East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service (ESFRS) by email but was advised to call 999.

He added: “I consider it a potential danger. If it was to fall off and hit someone it could be a serious danger.

“It’s an absolute danger if something were to happen.”

The tiles were removed by ESFRS on Friday, July 8, according to the resident.

Mr Bolton said the crews could not reach all of the loose tiles.

ESFRS added: “At 5.42pm we were called to attend a residential building on Edmund Close, Eastbourne, following reports of a dangerous structure.

“Crews from Eastbourne and Hastings attended.

“Firefighters used an aerial ladder platform to reach the loose tiles on the roof of the property and ensured that the scene was safe.”

Mr Bolton said tiles were removed from Normandy House, Provence House and Burgundy House in Kingsmere.

He added: “There are kids on the estate.

“The fire officer handed me a couple of the tiles and one of them weighed a ton.

“If one was to fall and hit someone on the head it would kill them.

“It’s extremely dangerous and it has been left for months and months and months and it’s extremely appalling.”

Optivo said: “We take the safety of our residents very seriously and we’re extremely sorry these tiles weren’t dealt with sooner.

“Although our records show a contractor did attend after the issue was reported earlier this year, we have no record that follow-up action by us was required.

“We’ve taped off the area, we’ll now remove any existing loose tiles and replace them.

"This is a four-storey building which will require appropriate access to carry out the remedial work; we’ll arrange this as a matter of urgency.

“We’ll be looking into what went wrong on this occasion and will ensure this doesn’t happen again.”