Dozens of residents evacuated after crane collapses in Reading town centre

Crane toppled and came to rest on the wall of Primark store

Crane with 60-metre jib falls on top of houses (National Police Air Service base at RAF Benson / Twitter)

Dozens of people were forced to sleep in temporary accommodation after a crane collapsed.

A total of 62 residents left their homes for the night as the 35-metre crane, with a 60-metre job, came down and came to rest by the wall of the former Primark store in Reading.

Some people can now return to their homes as the crane has been stabilised, but police have warned it could take days to remove the machinery from the scene.

West Street, where the incident occurred, remains closed as the jib will be dismantled on site.

No one was injured during the incident.

The evacuees were re-homed by Reading Borough Council on Saturday, and some residents made arrangements with friends and family.

Certain nearby shops were also vacated.

Superintendent Robert France said firefighters worked with other agencies to stabilise the crane.

“The crane has now been stabilised and the fire service has left the scene, however TVP and Reading Borough Council remain at the scene,” he said.

“Although the crane has been stabilised, the jib of the crane is damaged, therefore expert engineers from the Netherlands are travelling to the UK today to assess the damage.

”It is possible that it may take a number of days to repair the jib and remove the crane from the scene.“

He added that the police apologised for the inconvenience, and asked any resident urgently needing items from their home to approach the police cordon and officers would attempt to help.

BW Workplace Experts, which operates the crane, declined to comment.

Agencies contributed to this report.