Asbestos dumped in the street - and left for days
APENSIONER was furious after building waste containing ASBESTOS was dumped all over the road outside her home - and then not removed for three days.
Joan Gardiner, of Patterdale Close, Rochdale, complained after broken glass, rubbish and sheets of asbestos - which can be hazardous if disturbed were left outside her bungalow on Sunday, December 30.
Bosses said the waste was fully removed as soon as specialist teams became available on Wednesday, January 2.
Joan, 73, said she went ‘ballistic’ when she saw the mess on the street, which stretched across several houses.
She explained: “My son, who lives in Castleton, came to see me and he said ‘wait till you see what’s outside mum, you’ll hit the roof’ – and I did. I went down with my walking stick and had a look. It looked like a builder had done a job and just dumped the rubbish. It stretched all the way from the bottom of the road up to number 10.”
Worried the emergency services might be unable to access the road, where many older and disabled people live, Joan rang Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH), who manage the homes on her side of the close.
She says she was informed that the number was only for use in ‘emergencies’ over Christmas and that the environmental health department at Rochdale council would deal with the problem.
Joan then called the council and was distressed to be told nothing could be done until Wednesday, January 2.
Joan said she finally got some help after calling the police.
She said: “The man I spoke to was so helpful.
“They sent a car up and the next minute there was a lorry there. They cleared most of it up and moved the asbestos and cordoned it off, but said they couldn’t get rid of it as that needed a specialist.”
Workers in protective suits came out to finally remove the asbestos on Wednesday, but Joan is angry that it took so long.
She said: “Whoever tipped all their building rubbish over the Christmas period, you are horrible people.
“We are in old people’s bungalows and are either disabled or elderly – or both, so none of us could do anything about it.
“If there had been a fire or anyone needed an ambulance, they wouldn’t have got down the street.”
A Rochdale council spokesman said: “We are sorry to hear that a customer feels that her enquiry could have been dealt with sooner.
“We take all reports of fly-tipping seriously and encourage people to contact us with any information so that we can take action whenever possible.
“This has now been cleared by a specialist team.”
A spokesman for RBH said: “We were made aware of building rubble that had been fly-tipped on private land adjacent to Patterdale Close, which was said to contain asbestos waste – a fact that was later confirmed.
“As the land was not owned by RBH, we immediately referred the matter to the environmental health department at Rochdale council. The non-asbestos waste was removed as quickly as possible.
“As the asbestos needed specialist handling, it was removed on January 2.”