Villagers call for action after wall collapses for third time
VILLAGERS have been left confused after a Victorian wall at the border of their property collapsed on three separate occasions.
The collapses, which the homeowners said happened after heavy rainfall, damaged a car and have left a driveway blocked more than a month later.
Tina Summerfield, from Cwmavon, near Pontypool, said the council had been working for more than a month to find out who owned the wall on the edge of her driveway.
She said the council supported parts of the wall and cleared some debris after multiple collapses but had not been directly in contact to confirm whose responsibility repairs would be.
Initially, a small section of the wall, which dates back to 1900, collapsed on February 19, before a larger section fell on February 21, prompting the council to send a structural engineer and put up sandbags to support part of the wall.
But on March 4, a larger section collapsed – damaging a newly-purchased second-hand car and blocking the property’s driveway, trapping a camper trailer within.
The council supported the righthand section of the wall due to a risk of it compromising the lane behind it, but in emails responding to Mrs Summerfield’s local MP, it said the “area of further collapse” covered in debris in March – at the entrance to the property’s long driveway – was solely within the property’s boundary and initially seemed to be the home-owners’ responsibility.
Mrs Summerfield said: “Luckily, at the time [of the collapse] there were no cars passing by or any pedestrians walking nearby, and nobody got hurt.
“The collapsed wall became a bit of a Cwmavon attraction, as many people stop by to have a look, or slow down when driving by.”
She added: “Many locals keep asking for an update in solidarity, hoping that the council will step up and help.
“At present, we are unable to use our drive at all, which is a huge inconvenience.
“I don’t consider myself disabled but I have musculoskeletal problems so after the initial fall stepping over the second wall on the right-hand side of the drive was really difficult for me.
Obviously [now] it’s just carrying the shopping 20 or 30 metres further and not being able to take the trailer out... and I had to fix the car by the roadside with people stopping by and asking questions... it’s just a bit awkward.”
Mark Thomas, deputy director of highways and climate change for Torfaen council, said: “Council officers have undertaken extensive checks to determine the ownership of the wall, which dates back to 1900. With the research now complete, officers are in the process of contacting affected residents to develop a solution.”
Mrs Summerfield said she had not been contacted following this research, adding: “I am grateful for what the council did, there is no doubt about that, but from what they said I am not very hopeful.”