Structural engineers were today sifting through the wreckage of the collapsed building in West Bromwich in a bid to find out what caused the roof to cave in.

Traders and local residents in the High Street have been left waiting for answers.

Many have still not been allowed back to their properties and businesses have been forced to shut until the police cordon is lifted.

The devastating accident saw more than three tonnes of debris smash through two floors and into a ground floor estate agents, crushing a man to death.

It came less than five years after tragic 10-month-old Trilby Graham was killed by a piece of falling masonry which landed on her pram outside the Shalimar Restaurant, Bull Street.

Locals are now calling for more stringent safety checks on many of the town’s older buildings, some of which date back more than 100 years.

Margeret Williams, aged 59, of Old Meeting Street, said she had a narrow miss.

“A couple of years ago I was walking down the road when some debris landed on me which had fallen off one of these buildings,” she said.

“It’s very dangerous, I could have been killed. All these buildings should be checked out.

“Some people won’t even walk past these buildings because they think they are dangerous.”

Pharmacist Amarjit Sidhu, 55, who owns Sidhu’s Pharmacy on the High Street, added: “As a boss it’s my responsibility to make sure my staff and customers are safe. We need to make sure the buildings are safe.”

Russ Basford, aged 32, lives doors away from the collapsed building, and says he is not expecting to be allowed home before the end of the week.

“They are looking at all the buildings with pitched roofs, they just need to check them all over,” he said.

“We had our roof done a while ago, but I am concerned of course. You don’t know how the damage to this building might have shifted the others.”

Anyone who was in the area between midnight and 1am on Wednesday is urged to contact police at West Bromwich on 0845 113 5000.

By Lucy Townsend