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John and Jenni Turvey with son Charlie after their King’s Cross home was damaged by flooding |
From leak to flood, and a £15,000 bill
Inquiry after water forces families to move out
A MINOR leak being repaired at a flat in King’s Cross suddenly became a major flood which resulted in more than £15,000 worth of damage, with two families having to move into temporary hotel accommodation.
Homes for Islington (HfI) – the council’s housing agency – is investigating how what was at first a small leak at the third-floor flat at Stelfox House, in Penton Rise on the Weston Rise estate, could result in such damage.
Barnsbury Labour councillor Mouna Hamitouche, who lives on the estate, has called for a full investigation and demanded that HfI and the estate’s Tenants Management Organisation (TMO) improve maintenance.
The flooding happened after unemployed driver John Turvey, 51, discovered three small leaks, under the kitchen sink, under the toilet and a teardrop leak on the mains pipe.
A maintenance man was sent along but, according to Mr Turvey, a married man with a 14-year-old son, the minor problem developed into something far more serious. “You had to be there to see what happened next,” he said. “All of a sudden the mains pipe in the cupboard was gushing water.”
Mr Turvey immediately contacted a member of the estate’s TMO, who rushed to the flat to find out what was going on.
“By then we were standing in an inch-and-a-half of water,” said Mr Turvey. “We rang the council, who sent a qualified plumber from Kier-Islington. This plumber spent an hour sorting out the leak. When he fixed it he showed me the crack in the pipe.”
Mr Turvey estimated he has suffered £2,000 worth of damage to carpets, fixtures and fittings.
More damage was done to three flats immediately below, on the second and first floor. Water seeped through floorboards, damaging electrics and furniture.
One family of four, the Kupelis, spent two nights in a Travel Lodge hotel and then four days at a house in Palmers Green supplied by HfI while their flat dried out.
Hatice Kupeli, 46, said expensive Turkish carpets had been badly damaged. “There are few things worse than seeing your home ruined with water,” she added. “It was very depressing.”
Cllr Hamitouche said the flooding summed up the many problems on the estate.
“There is supposed to have been a rolling programme of maintenance but I don’t know what was done,” she added. “I would like the council to investigate what is happening here. Many leaseholders pay thousands of pounds a year but have very little to show for it.”
HfI has apologised for the flooding damage and told Mr Turvey to make a claim for compensation. A spokesman said: “We received an emergency call regarding a leak on January 30 and sent an engineer around to fix this the same day. On February 10 we got a further call about a separate leak in the same flat and again sent an engineer to fix this leak.
“We’re going to visit the flat soon to make sure the tenant is happy with the repairs. As a courtesy we sent a letter explaining what the tenant’s next steps should be regarding an insurance claim.” |
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