Woman’s bedroom ceiling collapses two weeks after moving into new house in Homerton

Sofia Mendes and what remains of her ceiling. Picture: Polly Hancock (Image: Archant)

The mother-of-two, who cares for her disabled sister, first noticed water leaking through a crack in her bedroom ceiling after a contractor had been round to fix her broken boiler on Thursday.

She contacted Sanctuary Housing straight away but staff couldn’t find the leak when they visited the house in Kenton Road, Homerton, the next day.

Then on Saturday disaster struck. “I heard it and froze,” said Sofia. “I thought my daughters had fallen trying to assemble a bed.

“I was screaming and shouting and the workmen who were here doing the floor ran upstairs and said: ‘No, your ceiling fell off’.

Sofia Mendes and what remains of her ceiling. Picture: Polly Hancock (Image: Archant)

“I told everyone to run downstairs so they would be safe and then another bit fell off. I called the fire brigade who came round and made it safe.

“Half of the ceiling fell. If that had fallen on top of me I would be in hospital or dead. It was heavy bits of concrete or plaster. I was half-an-hour away from it falling on me in my bedroom.”

Sofia had moved into the property from the Kingsmead Estate after years waiting for a bigger property since her disabled sister came to live with her.

She said when she moved in she was given a list by Sanctuary saying as of September 23 everything in the house had met the required standards.

A spokesman for Sanctuary said: “We were first contacted about an issue with the boiler on Thursday and attended within 24 hours to fix the problem.

“We were then contacted again on Friday to advise of a leak at the property and visited on Saturday.

“Our contractors were initially unable to identify the cause of the leak but have attended the property again today and fixed the problem.

“The ceiling has also been made safe and an appointment has been made to repair it later this month in agreement with the resident.”