Yahoo News Manchester city centre road to be closed for a week after bricks and scaffolding fall from 'unsafe building'
A road in Manchester city centre is expected to be closed for at least a week due to an 'unsafe building'.
Lever Street, in the Northern Quarter, was blocked off yesterday (May 15) due to concerns with the building behind the Bem Brasil restaurant. The top floor was pictured tilting, with bricks and scaffolding falling down to the ground.
An eyewitness today said the roof of the building now appears to have partially collapsed. As work is carried out to make the building safe, Lever Street is now expected to remain closed for at least a week.
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This time scale could change however. Manchester City Council said the road is shut to 'mitigate any potential harm to the public'.
A town hall spokesperson added that the building's owners have been contacted, with work expected to be carried out 'to make the structure safe'. In a statement, the council said: "Building control was alerted to an issue on Wednesday, May 15, relating to a building in Lever Street that was allegedly unsafe.
"As a precaution, the road has been temporarily closed to facilitate repairs to the structure, as well as mitigating any potential harm to the public. Building control has been in contact with representatives of the building's owners and assurances have been made the works will take place to make the structure safe."
Pictures taken on Wednesday (May 15) showed what appeared to be bricks and parts of scaffolding on the ground after falling from the building, behind an alley off Little Lever Street. Lever Street is closed from the A62 Great Ancoats Street to Houldsworth Street.
The emergency closure has also meant buses that operate via Lever Street have had to be diverted. On the diversion, Stagecoach said: "216/230/231 Services heading out of Piccadilly
"Ahead from Piccadilly on to London Road (Left) Fairfield Street (Left) Great Ancoats Street to resume normal route at Every Street & Pollard Street."
