Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Record
Daily Record
World
Graeme Thomson

One person killed after crane collapses and smashes into terraced houses in London

At least one person has died after a crane fell on to houses in London, leaving four other people injured.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) said the crane collapsed on a site where flats are being constructed, and crashed on to two adjacent terrace houses on Compton Close, Bow, on Wednesday afternoon.

A video posted on Twitter showed a terraced house with part of the roof caved in, and emergency services said "a complex rescue operation" is under way which is likely to take some time.

London Ambulance Service (LAS) said crews have treated four people at the scene.

Emergency personnel at the scene in Bow, east London, after the crane smashed into a row of houses (PA)

A spokeswoman for LAS said: "We treated two of these patients for head injuries and took them to hospital and we assessed the other two patients at the scene.

"We are working closely with other members of the emergency services at the scene with more updates to follow."

The London Ambulance Service later tweeted: "A further update from the scene at Bow. Sadly, despite the efforts of emergency services, a fifth person has been found and died at the scene.

"Our thoughts are with their family at this difficult time."

LFB assistant commissioner Graham Ellis said: "Our urban search and rescue crews are undertaking a complex rescue operation and using specialist equipment to search the properties.

"There are reports of at least one person that may be missing and unaccounted for in the houses."

The crane was helping build new houses before it crashed into nearby homes (Getty Images)

The crane that collapsed was being used by Swan Housing Association and NU living.

A spokeswoman for Swan Housing Association and NU living said: "Swan Housing Association/NU living is aware of an incident that occurred at our Watts Grove development site in Tower Hamlets, east London, this afternoon.

"A full incident response has been implemented and our staff are on site supporting the emergency services in their response."

Work on the Watts Grove site began in 2018 and the one, two and three-bed shared ownership apartments are replacing an electrical substation building, according to the NU living website.

Neil Marney, chief executive of Marney Construction, said his company was working on another site and he could see the crane being erected on Tuesday.

He said: "My project manager on the site called me immediately and said the crane you were looking at yesterday being erected has just collapsed.

Members of London Fire Brigade assess the damage to a property in Bow (AFP via Getty Images)

"So all I could see yesterday was the mast and the cab was on, and then I believe they started to add sections of the boom."

The crane that collapsed was not one of Marney Construction's cranes nor was it a crane on one of its sites.

Properties either side of the incident have been evacuated.

The scene in Bow, east London, after a 20-metre crane smashed into a house (PA)

The Metropolitan Police sent officers to the scene after they were called at around 2.39pm on Wednesday to Gale Street to a report of a crane that collapsed into a residential property and a building site.

Unite national officer Jerry Swain said there must be "an urgent, full and complete investigation into the circumstances that led to this accident".

He added: "The preliminary findings of which must be released in weeks, rather than months or years, in order to ensure that similar accidents are avoided in the future."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.