Asbestos team help demolish high flats SPECIALIST asbestos handlers are to be brought in to demolish Glasgow's infamous Red Road flats.

Asbestos team help demolish high flats

SPECIALIST asbestos handlers are to be brought in to demolish Glasgow's infamous Red Road flats.

Painstaking preparation work for the demolition of the first Red Road multi-storey block is under way - marking the first stage of Glasgow Housing Association's regeneration plans for the area.

A block of 308 flats at 153 to 213 Petershill Drive will be the first of the eight Red Road blocks to be taken down.

But the amount of asbestos present in the building means specialists are being brought in to deal with the deadly material.

Contractor Safedem has surveyed the block and found asbestos in the internal and external walls.

Specialist teams will now have to dispose of the material in accordance with strict health and safety guidelines.

Individual flats will be sealed and smoke-tested to ensure there can be no release of asbestos fibres or dust before removal work is carried out.

All the hazardous material will then be taken into sealed skips and onto a licensed disposal facility.

The work will be monitored by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde's Public Health Protection Unit and the North Glasgow Community Health Care Partnership.

GHA bosses say this will ensure Safedem complies with all safety measures needed to protect people living and working nearby. An information centre has been set up at 30 Petershill Court where residents can find out more about the work.

The centre is open from 10am until 2pm, Monday to Friday.

Jim Sneddon, GHA's executive director of regeneration, said: "Safedem has a wealth of experience within the demolition industry and we would like to reassure tenants that the demolition of 153 to 213 Petershill Drive will be carried out in accordance with strict Health and Safety Executive guidelines.

"The health and safety of our tenants and of the public generally is of our utmost concern and we would urge anyone who is interested in the progress of the demolition to visit Safedem's Demolition Information Centre and ask any questions they may have."

William Sinclair, managing director of Safedem, added: "The asbestos survey results have confirmed the asbestos present can be removed with tried and tested procedures and controls. As soon as the asbestos is removed we will fully assess and survey the structure of the blocks to finalise our demolition design.

"Throughout the entire process our staff at the Demolition Information Centre will be pleased to answer any questions."

Plans have yet to be decided for the next step of demolition, beyond the removal of asbestos.

One consideration originally discussed by GHA was demolition by deconstructing the block floor by floor, but they say this could put contractors at risk because of the great height of the towers.

The controlled use of explosives is now being considered but GHA say the final decision on which demolition method will be used will only be taken following a detailed survey of the block's structure after the removal of asbestos.

If demolition by explosives goes ahead, known as a blowdown', it is expected to take place later this year and work at the site is expected to be completed by summer 2010.

An exclusion zone would have to be established around the block highlighting any properties or businesses which would need to be evacuated for the event.

GHA say the affected residents and business owners will be consulted throughout the process, along with the HSE, Strathclyde Police, Glasgow City Council, Strathclyde Fire and Rescue and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Richie Carroll, community housing manager of Red Road Balornock Local Housing Organisation, who manage the properties in the area on behalf of GHA, said: "The Red Road flats are an internationally famous symbol of 1960s housing design and the demolition preparation under way marks the start of the transformation and regeneration of an entire community."

CASE STUDY

Janet won't be sad to see the old Red Road flats come down THE Red Road flats may still dominate the Glasgow skyline for now, but for many of the people who lived in them, seeing their destruction won't prompt tears. Janet Callander, 84, lived in one block for 17 years. Janet said: "I moved into a second floor flat in 1991. It was all right at first but the building went downhill. "You couldn't always use the lift. I've got a bad leg, so it was quite hard. "Inside my flat was okay but you couldn't get new bathrooms or kitchens because of the asbestos in the building. "I didn't know many people living round about. You kept yourself to yourself. You never got to know people. I didn't want to know them. They had some filthy habits some of them." Janet recently moved into a new GHA home in Avonspark Street. She says she couldn't be happier in her four-in-a-block. Janet added: "They told us they couldn't renovate our old house because of the asbestos. "So when I got the chance to move I jumped at it. "It'll be sad to see the buildings at Red Road coming down but I'm not sorry I left. I wouldn't go back for anything - no way. "My new place is brilliant. It's lovely and quiet. Because of my knee I can't manage the stairs so I've got a ground floor. I'm very happy with it."