North Ealing tenants fear of building collapse over huge wall cracks

Tenants who can see into each other's rooms due to huge cracks in the walls have told of how they live in fear of their west London homes collapsing.

Adam Hamdan, who lives in a flat in Hanger View Way estate in North Ealing, said the electrical sockets in his walls "move" and he believed the wiring "could fall out any day soon".

His neighbour, Mick Brady, said he was "frightened the flat would fall down".

Housing association Catalyst said an inspector will review the issues.

Mr Hamdan told BBC Radio London's Anna O'Neill how he could see into his kitchen through the crack in his bedroom wall.

"It started as a hairline crack and within two weeks I could fit my hand in it," he said.

Mr Hamdan added he and other tenants had contacted Catalyst but "had not received a specific answer".

His neighbour, Mr Brady, also reported gaping cracks in his flat's walls and said it was "getting to the stage where it was frightening".

He said when he was recovering from an operation he had "sat and watched the cracks get bigger and bigger" over three months.

"We've had damp and leaks start in 2017 and now it looks like the building will fall down due to the amount of cracks it has," he said.

Mr Brady has been moved into a different flat while the issues are fixed, but added he and other tenants were scared of a potential collapse.

Another resident, Veronica, lives upstairs in the same estate building and spotted the problems appearing in 2020.

"I noticed the cracks overnight just by my window, going across my wall and then on both ends of my living room," she told the BBC.

She continued: "All of a sudden, everywhere I looked there were cracks outside my flat and in the communal hallway.

"I'm really worried because I'm a leaseholder and I don't know what I'll do if I ever try and move."

Catalyst said it would send a senior repairs inspector to visit the building within days.

A spokesman said the group had "removed some vegetation" which it suspected had been contributing to the issues in Mr Brady's flat.

He added Catalyst would continue to monitor the building.

Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hellobbclondon@bbc.co.uk