Florence Mine film

A film based at Florence Mine in Egremont will premiere on Saturday 15th December.

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People allowed home for 30 minutes

People living in nine homes evacuated when a mineshaft collapsed leaving a 25 metre hole have today been allowed home - for 30 minutes.

Scott Moffatt, his partner and their six month old son Max returned to pack up their belongings after being told they won't be able to go back home until after Christmas.

" We are staying with family but it is a squash. My dad is loving seeing his grandson everyday but it's not the same as having your own space.

"It's Max's first Christmas so it is not ideal but at least we have had some access."

– Scott Moffatt

Evacuated homes may not safe until after Christmas

People living in nine homes evacuated last week following the collapse of a mineshaft in Egremont have been told they may not be back in their homes for Christmas.The residents have each been given 30 minutes this afternoon, November 21, to take valuables, documents, clothes and Christmas presents.

Last Wednesday a 25 metre hole opened up behind the properties on Howbank Road when contractors for Copeland Borough Council, who own the land, were attempting to pump concrete into the mineshaft in a bid to cap it. As the hole opened the drilling rig pouring in the concrete collapsed into it.

Subsidence had been reported to the council who had been monitoring the area for six months.The council are working with contractors to make the area safe and stabilise the properties, the work may not be completed before Christmas.

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Another home evacuated

A ninth home has been evacuated on Howbank Road in Egremont, after a drilling rig being used to cap a mine with concrete, fell around 50 feet into the shaft on 14th November.

The latest home had to be evacuated because the slippage of the ground surrounding the houses has increased.

Copeland Council say they are continuing to advise residents, for their own safety, not to return to their homes.

"“We are continuing to work with our contractors to identify a solution to the slippage, and our teams will be working on site throughout the weekend as well as continuing to monitor for further movement.

“In addition, along with a number of agencies, we are working to ensure that residents practical and welfare concerns are met.

"We realise that being evacuated from your home without access is incredibly inconvenient, but we must emphasise that this is a necessary safety measure.”

– Pat Graham, Director of Services, Copeland

The council couldn't specify when residents would be allowed to return to their homes, but say they are exploring potential access arrangements for next week.

Work starts to stabilise Egremont mineshaft

Residents living near a mineshaft that collapsed when a drilling rig fell in are still unable to return to their properties, as work starts to make it safe.

The site in Howbank Road, Egremont, has been fenced off and people are being advised to stay away from the area.

A 25 metre hole was created when the incident happened on Wednesday 14th November.

Nine homes had to be evacuated.

Copeland Borough Council say they expect work to start today to create a road at the back of the site to allow vehicles to start work to stabilise the hole.

Paul Walker, chief executive of Copeland Council said:

We do need to emphasise that it is very dangerous for anyone to access the site at the current time until we have stabilised the mine shaft. Our advice is to stay well away. We will be working swiftly with our advisers and contractors to deal with the incident both now and in the longer term.

Our priority is to make sure the residents that have had to leave their properties are well looked after and that we secure the site so that we can allow them to return home. We will not know exactly how long this will take until we have received more detailed findings from the investigations that are currently taking place.

– Paul Walker, Chief Executive of Copeland Council

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