On the night of the 14 November, Barton House, a block of flats in East Bristol, was evacuated in the early hours of the evening. Residents of the city’s oldest block of flats were told to leave the building after concerns were raised that “in the event of a fire, explosion, or there is a risk to the structure of the block”.
People living in the flats who couldn’t stay with relatives or loved ones were asked to sleep in an emergency shelter at Cash Hall at City Hall, unless residents had found a hotel in which to stay. It is understood that over 400 people have left their homes and many have no clue when they’ll be able to return.
Shaban Ali, a Barton House resident and branch secretary at the Bristol branch of the Renter’s Union, ACORN, told the press:
“Residents are in a state of shock, panic and disbelief tonight. Not long after a hard-fought battle to ensure the safety of buildings and work having been carried out on Barton House, we find out through WhatsApp groups and local journalists’ social media accounts that we are being ordered to evacuate. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come as a shock anymore, but this is being handled so poorly by the Council who have been out of touch with the community for a very long time.”
The aftermath
Many were left with questions. While it seems that this was an out-of-the-blue development, the Bristol Cable has since revealed that structural issues were uncovered in 2019. However, the City Council has said that the issues facing the building are much more serious.
Since that Tuesday, the residents have heard nothing from the Council. Some residents returned after a few hours just to get some clothes, food and other essential items. However, it’s been a little chaotic since then. On Friday 17 November, there were rumours that Officers were removing people’s items from their homes. Many residents then rushed back to the Council-owned block of flats and refused to leave until they were allowed to talk to local councillors.
It has since been revealed in an email that the Council spoke to three residents about the need to remove their items to conduct more surveys to seek out more structural issues.
“No possessions will be removed from other flats … If any further surveys are needed in other flats, we will contact the tenants and ask for permission”.
This is little comfort. Some residents are still refusing to leave their homes, saying the Council has offered no communication and did little to inspect or solve the complaints they made about the living conditions of the buildings. Some who don’t speak English as a first language told Bristol 24/7 that they had no communication with someone in their own language.
Residents held a demonstration at City Hall on Friday to try and talk to members of the Council Cabinet and the Bristol Mayor, Marvin Rees.
Where is Mr Rees?
When to evacuation happened, Marvin Rees was in Kigali, Rwanda, taking part in the Commonwealth Local Government Forum’s conference on climate and migration. The next day, he held an emergency Zoom call with local journalists in which he said that despite being just under 10,000km away, he was still leading. He told Points West when they asked ‘Where Are You?’:
“Well, I am leading and I’m here talking to you…. But unfortunately, I’m representing the UK at the Commonwealth Local Government Forum … I’ll be back in Bristol as soon as I practically can be … It’s not an easy airport to get to but I’m in touch with my team and talking to them daily and I’m talking to the residents as well.”
It should be noted that Mr Rees did eventually meet with residents, but is flying off to Dubai soon to speak at a UK Climate Action Forum.
Protest at City Hall
Sunday 19 November showed that many people had decided that enough was enough and wanted more transparency from the Council as well as a clearer, long-term plan for their futures. ACORN were at City Hall to try and get answers from the Council. Here is a tweet from an ACORN representative asking questions of the Mayor. In another tweet, the same ACORN representative is seen tussling with no fewer than 8 security guards, while people are telling them to “Leave him! He’s going!!”.
ACORN Bristol released a statement saying:
“The initial shock and the chaos of the evacuation, which many residents found out about via the local press and word of mouth, has given way to confusion and uncertainty. Residents have been left in the dark about what support is immediately available and what happens next – unable to plan, unable to work, and in some cases torn away from their family and communities.
“The events of yesterday only added to that, with residents left feeling upset and ignored by council leaders. Why is the Council shutting us down rather than providing meaningful, material support for the 400 people of Barton House?… Our priority is the residents of Barton House, and ACORN will continue supporting our members and fighting for the dignity, respect and support that they deserve at this extremely difficult and distressing time.”
The sorry state of Bristol’s homes
This is not the first time Bristol’s homes have made the news. Stories about mouldy houses in the city have made it onto both local news and national news. With many people feeling powerless because landlords have much more power than the average renter.
In 2017, Barton House was one of four tower blocks reported by the Government to have a ‘Large Panel System’ that could lead to “structural issues” and needed to have a structural survey as soon as possible. It was later revealed by Bristol Post that no structural survey has been undertaken since 1970!
Meanwhile, modern-day renters in Barton House are still without a future or a fixed plan. They do not know what will happen to them or even if Barton House will be their place of residence in the long term. Sam Kidel, ACORN Bristol Organiser said:
“There are serious questions that need to be answered by Bristol City Council, not least why residents have been given assurances over the safety of this and other tower blocks only to find out via the media that they are to be evacuated over structural concerns in the event of a fire.”
In the meantime, Local Journalists at the Bristol Cable have started a fundraiser, with the aim of raising £1,000 to aid the residents of Barton House. So far they have raised over £12,000. I highly encourage our readers to donate what they can, as anything goes a long way.
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