Town centre road closure to 'last a few days' after sudden building collapse

A town centre road is expected to be closed for a 'few days' after a building collapsed.

Stand Lane in Radcliffe was cordoned off after the derelict shop came crashing down on Sunday night.

Neighbours reported hearing a loud crash as part of the front and gable end of the building fell into the street at about 9.40pm. Luckily no-one was injured.

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This afternoon Bury council tweeted: "Stand Lane at the junction of New Road is closed, and the junction of Church St West/Church Street is closed in both directions due to debris in the road. Diversions are in place with the closure expected to last a few days. Thank you for your patience."

Ottman Bouhsiss, whose flat overlooks the shop, told how he was watching TV when he heard a loud noise. He said: "I thought it was an earthquake.

"The building trembled, I looked at the lights in the ceiling to see if they were moving. I looked out of the window and saw the building had collapsed. Bits of of it were still wobbling."

He added: "It was lucky no-one was walking or driving past, because they would have been seriously injured."

On Monday morning, an officer from Bury council's building control department said the cause of the collapse was not yet known. They added the building's owner had been contacted and work would now be carried out to make the scene safe.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire Service said: "Just before 10pm last night (Sunday, March 19), two fire engines from Whitefield and Bury central fire station were called to reports of a building collapse on Stand Lane, Radcliffe.

"Crews arrived quickly at scene. Firefighters used cordons and a thermal imaging camera to make