Demolition delayed to avoid Benwell anniversary

The demolition of a derelict tower block has been delayed to avoid clashing with the one-month anniversary of a blast which killed two people.

Newcastle City Council had already scheduled a controlled explosion to bring down Hexham House in the Walker area of Newcastle, for 16 November.

However, following last month's fatal blast in Violet Close, Benwell, the authority said it would be "insensitive" to carry out the demolition that day.

Seven-year-old Archie York and 35-year-old Jason Laws died in the explosion, which happened during the early hours of 16 October. Three men have been arrested.

The controlled explosion in Walker has been moved to 30 November, the Local Democracy Reporting Service understands.

Work was initially planned to take place in May, but the project has been hit with a series of delays.

A council spokesperson said: "We felt it was insensitive for us to conduct a controlled explosion on this day [16 November], given the potential for it to remind those affected of the traumatic events that claimed the lives of two of our city’s residents.

"Work has been undertaken to weaken Hexham House in advance of the demolition, so we still need to conduct the demolition in the coming weeks.

"We apologise if this causes any inconvenience but hope residents understand the reasons why we have taken this decision."

The razing of the 16-storey Hexham House will be the first explosive demolition staged in Newcastle, since Sir Bobby Robson pushed the button to bring down the old Scottish and Newcastle Brewery in 2008.

Standing at 43m (141 feet), Hexham House and its sister building, Titan House, have dominated the local skyline since being completed in 1968.

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