Woman ‘just couldn’t stop crying’ after garage roof blew into her garden
A woman has been left ‘devastated’ after a garage roof planted itself in her garden.
Jacqueline Wells, who lives in Leam Lane, Gateshead, had watched helplessly as it took off in the recent storms and ploughed into her fence, taking out her flower beds in the process.
She and her husband, Ian, said she had reported the flimsy roof to the council more than a year ago.
The couple told Gateshead Council it had been damaged during previous high winds during Storm Otto.
Jacqueline, a retail manager, said: ‘The storm caused damage to our garage roof at the beginning of 2022 and I reported it to the council straight away.
‘The block of five garages were all affected and our car was hit by some of the bricks as they came down.
‘We had to carry out our own repairs just to make it safe and it wasn’t until about June that someone from the council came out to see it.
‘After that, we heard nothing until the beginning of February this year, when we were told it was condemned.’
Jacqueline claims the roof has caused hundreds of pounds worth of damage to her garden.
The 59-year-old added: ‘This is devastating for me. I spend a lot of money on my garden – the fences alone cost around £2,000 when they were put up, so this has hit me really badly. I just couldn’t stop crying.’
A Gateshead Council spokesman said that the garages had in fact already been condemned and that plans had been underway for a demolition date.
A spokesperson said: ‘The garages at Leam Lane had already been condemned, and we were working towards defining a date for demolition.
‘A structural engineer has since inspected the garages, and made the decision to move the demolition forward due to their unsafe condition. All debris from the storm damage will be removed this week, and we will be corresponding with the affected tenants as soon as possible to advise them of a date for the demolition.
‘Once demolished, the garages will not be rebuilt, with plans on future use of the land yet to be decided.
‘In the meantime, we will be visiting any tenants who have suffered personal losses due to the damage to discuss compensation. We have since offered an alternative garage site to Ms Wells, which was accepted.’
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