Residents of a council flat block are crying out for help. A leaseholder in Pitcairn House in Hackney, east has slammed the building's "appalling" conditions which she claims are now in an "emergency" situation. The situation has become so bad over the course of a decade that Zoe Goodman, who lives on the fifth floor, feels "intentionally neglected" as leaks and fly-tipping continues.
Most who call the nine-storey building in St Thomas' Square, are council tenants who say their complaints about the 61-year-old building have gone unanswered. Zoe said: "Loads of flats have had their fire alarms decommissioned because of previous or current leaks. We also have leaks in the stairwell, which is our only fire escape, making them slippery and wet.
It's really dangerous." Hackney Council said that while leaks have been affecting people's homes, these "will not have impacted the overall structure of the building". The authority added that all housing blocks are "regularly inspected", but anyone with concerns about fire escapes should contact the council immediately.
Among a litany of other problems, Zoe claims that the lifts in the block regularly break, leaving some people stranded for long periods. She said: "One old lady who lives on the eighth floor goes and sits in the Wetherspoons nearby and waits for somebody to try and fix it. She can't go shopping for days.
The council have now said they will refurbish the lifts within 2025. But this is an emergency, it's not a luxury." Despi.