Council tenant injured by falling plaster angry over flat ‘health hazard’
MAN SAYS DAMP PROBLEM NOT BEING PROPERLY ADDRESSED
A COUNCIL tenant is still smarting after part of the ceiling of his Leicester flat fell down on his head while he was in the bathroom.
Matthew Sinkinson was left concussed and bleeding from a gash on his scalp following the incident at his home in Mowmacre Hill.
The 36-year-old engineer, who lives alone at the Leicester City Council property, needed to go to accident and emergency at Leicester Royal Infirmary for his injuries and has only recently been able to return to work.
Weeks after the incident, he said the underlying cause of the damp problem that led to part of the ceiling and wall breaking off and falling on him has still not been properly addressed.
Mr Sinkinson said the incident happened on the afternoon of Sunday, October 4. “I was on the toilet when I heard a strange cracking noise,” he said. “The next thing I knew was all this plaster coming down on my head.
“It hurt like hell and I was a bit dazed. “I looked up and saw that part of the ceiling and wall had come away. I put my hand on the back of my head and looked down to see it covered in blood – I was horrified.”
Mr Sinkinson rang the NHS helpline and was advised to contact his GP the next day. He said: “I spoke to my doctor and told him my symptoms, which included headaches, blurred vision, nausea and dizziness, and he told me to get myself straight down to the A&E at the infirmary. They treated my head injury and I was diagnosed with concussion.
“I had to take two weeks off work, and am still suffering from the effects.”
Mr Sinkinson is angry and frustrated at the treatment he says he has received at the hands of the council’s housing department.
“For several days afterwards I had to go to the toilet in a bucket,” he said. “I remember sending an e-mail to the council asking whether they thought that was right and didn’t get a reply. My children usually visit at weekends but weren’t able to for several weeks. It’s not really acceptable.”
After several requests, the city council did send a housing officer and arranged for a handyman to pay a visit.
Mr Sinkinson said: “All they did was remove the loose plaster and cover the gaps with black refuse sacks and Gaffer tape. But as soon as it rained, the damp returned.”
Mr Sinkinson, who has lived at the property for three years, said: “I’ve had a problem with damp in the kitchen and bathroom ever since I moved in. They’ve told me the roof and guttering is sound but I’m not so sure.
“They sent someone along a few years ago when I had mould and they replastered the bathroom. It wasn’t long before the damp had returned.
“I think it is the down-pipe from the guttering. It’s a three-storey block and I’m in the middle flat. There is a balcony outside my front door and the down-pipe travels from the walkway above against my wall, between the kitchen and bathroom backing onto it.
“Where the pipe comes through there is some kind of seal but it has cracks, so when it rains the moisture enters the wall of my flat. It’s a health hazard.”
A city council spokesman said: “We visited the property on Tuesday, last week, to carry out a temporary repair.
“Mr Sinkinson explained the ceiling damage was caused by a blocked outlet and the problem happens when it rains. The outlet had been cleared, but we will monitor it before making an appointment to re-plaster the ceiling.”