Two people living inside the property had to be removed by emergency services last summer
The partially demolished house on Walton Breck Road in Anfield
The partially demolished house on Walton Breck Road in Anfield(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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Fears have been raised that an unsafe house a stone’s throw from Anfield stadium is “ready to go” after demolition work seemingly stalled on site. Since last summer, a property on Walton Breck Road has stood vacant after emergency services had to remove occupants inside.
The terraced house was found to be structurally unsound with a crack measuring approximately five metres, and the windows and bay sagging as a result. Two occupants were found to still be inside the building just before Liverpool FC played a pre-season friendly last July.
Work was thought to have started at the property last month when officials were seen on site. Now, confusion reigns over the future of the house after it was left partially tinned up and the top floor exposed to the elements.
On July 30 last year, a large emergency service presence attended the house, near to LFC’s stadium as an unsafe property was cordoned off with two people inside. Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) said the two occupants, who were conscious and breathing, were unable to leave without assistance.
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Properties adjacent to the affected home were evacuated and a structural engineer was requested. The cordon, which ran along Walton Breck Road from the junction with Sleepers Hill to the corner of Burleigh Road North, was put in place due to the number of people in the area for Liverpool's double-header friendly against Athletic Bilbao.
It is understood work began around September 6 to demolish the property before it was paused. Images seen by the ECHO show piles of bricks from the top of the house strewn across the pavement.
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John Geraghty has owned a neighbouring property for the past 20 years. He told the ECHO demolition work seemed to have begun last month but came to a halt suddenly, leaving the front of the house exposed.
He said: “I was on holiday and I found out they were demolishing it. We were hoping it would take a day to do.
“It’s completely open, children can climb into it and the way it is, it’s ready to go.
The partially demolished house at Walton Breck Road in Anfield
The partially demolished house at Walton Breck Road in Anfield(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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“Everyone was in shock that people were still living in there. The whole road had to be closed off.
“I’ve got no sunlight coming into my front now and there’s a fence tied to it to stop people getting in. It’s absolutely shocking, we’re had to deal with this for the 20 years I’ve been here.”
Emergency services worked to vacate the occupants from the unsafe property - members of the MFRS search and rescue team shored the inside doorway of the property for crews to gain access to the premises.
A spokesperson admitted the house had been inspected a month earlier.
Pigeons roosting in the partially demolished house at Walton Breck Road in Anfield
Pigeons roosting in the partially demolished house at Walton Breck Road in Anfield(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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John added: “The roof is totally exposed with pigeons nesting in my loft due to the exposed side. What has been left is absolutely appalling.
“Now visitors walk past and take videos of the absolute comedic view that is left, like a toy dolls house with the side removed and all bedrooms on view.”
A Liverpool Council spokesperson said: “This matter is still ongoing and we are in the process of pursuing further work on the property.”