Gantry fall drama 50ft up
Two painters were stranded 50ft above the ground today when the platform they were working on dramatically collapsed as they decorated a Wolverhampton tower block.
Firefighters broke into a home in Longfield House to rescue the men from the eighth floor of the high-rise as 15 residents were evacuated to a nearby community centre.
A specialist rescue unit was also called in to prevent the platform collapsing further and the scene remained sealed off this afternoon.
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Police and firefighters were called to the 20-storey block in Tithe Croft, Heath Town, just after 10.20am when one end of the platform plunged from 90ft high on the ninth floor to the fifth floor.
West Midlands Fire Service spokesman Mike Fox said: "This left two workmen stranded on a balcony on the eighth floor.
"They have been rescued by firefighters who forced entry into the flats to make sure they could be safely retrieved. No injuries have been reported but I'm told they are possibly suffering from shock."
The painters, sub-contractors for Wolverhampton Homes, were trapped for 15 minutes. The accident is being investigated by the Health & Safety Executive.
David Waterhouse, Wolverhampton Homes manager, said this afternoon: "We are looking into what happened and we take anything like this extremely seriously. Tenants in the bottom nine floors have been moved to Heath Town community centre purely as a precaution."
Wolverhampton Homes officials are assessing the safety of the block to see if residents can return to their homes this afternoon.nextpage
