Residents at a block of newbuild flats at a £250m regeneration site in Glasgow have been made homeless for Christmas.
Tenants in the NorthBridge development, in Sighthill, told how they received a knock on the door at 6pm on Wednesday, November 23, and were told to pack a bag with no prior warning - just six months after moving in.
20 families from two blocks were evacuated and moved into hotels and rented accommodation across the city by property manager Lowther Homes, amid concerns over fire safety.
It was found plasterboards had been incorrectly installed at flats built by housebuilder Keepmoat Homes, and fire collars had not been installed, putting residents at risk.
Tenants and homeowners have been told they will not be allowed back into their homes until February 28 at the earliest.
Distressed resident Peter Collins, 45, has moved into his aunt's spare bedroom with his dog and claims tenants weren't told why they had to leave.
He told the Record: "Three people turned up and evacuated us all at night. I had a knock on the door and they just said you're booked into the Travelodge and taxis have been ordered.
"They didn't give us a real reason - all we were told is there was a safety issue. 20 families were gathered in the street and we piled into taxis with pets and kids.
"There was no warning. I've had to take a week off work because of the stress - now I'm homeless at Christmas.
"Paying for hotels is no consolation. I've been kicked out of my home at night with no reason why."
Tenant Jackie McColgan said: "I had just put up my Christmas tree and was excited to have my first Christmas in my home.
"Now I've been turfed out four weeks before Christmas. This has been really upsetting and I had to take time off work.
"To watch all of your belongings be packed up and then moved out of your home is really heartbreaking. It is just awful."
After residents were evacuated extra fire alarms were installed at the property, along with fire safety equipment.
It is understood homeowners received a letter from Keepmoat Homes explaining the remedial works but tenants did not.
The letter stated: "Plasterboard installation was not installed as per approved design and some fire collars had not been installed as per the manufacturer's guidelines". Adding: "Defects do not comply with the requirements of the approved Building Warrant at the time of construction".
The highly publicised Sighthill Transformational Regeneration Area (TRA) was the biggest regeneration scheme of its type in the UK outside of London. Keepmoat won the bid from Glasgow City Council to deliver more than 800 homes in October 2017.
A Lowther Homes spokesperson said: “We’re so sorry for the upheaval caused, especially as it’s in the run-up to Christmas.
“We’ve provided all the support we possibly can to our tenants. Our staff have been on site around the clock and will continue to do everything possible to support everyone affected in the weeks ahead.
“The remedial work now underway is absolutely essential. The checks we carried out confirmed certain aspects of the construction work carried out by the builder, Keepmoat, did not meet building standards and need to be corrected.”
Lowther Homes said they had kept residents up to date at every step, including the work needed to fix the plasterboards, via email and phone.
A spokesperson for Keepmoat Homes said: “As part of our ongoing work on apartments currently under construction at our NorthBridge development in Glasgow, we became aware that in some areas the plasterboard was not installed as per approved design and some fire collars had not been installed as per the manufacturer’s guidelines. As a result of these findings, we promptly commenced thorough investigative works to all the apartment blocks on the development to ensure the safety of all residents.
“During the course of these investigations, we discovered further defects to four occupied blocks and unfortunately this has resulted in residents from two of the blocks being immediately moved out into temporary accommodation, where they will remain until all remedial works are completed.
“This situation has arisen as a result of poor workmanship by some of our contractors on the development and in spite of regular checks and inspections being carried out by the Keepmoat construction management team and third-party warranty providers and building control.
“We are deeply embarrassed and disappointed that this has happened, and we are committed to doing everything possible to rectify the situation as soon as possible. We are working closely with Lowther Homes and Glasgow City Council, to make sure all residents are fully supported throughout the process.”
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