Ipswich Cardinal Lofts residents may be out until January

Residents forced to leave their homes due to fire-risk at their tower block have been told they may not be able to return until the new year.

The top three floors of Cardinal Lofts in Ipswich were evacuated last Tuesday.

The fire service said a new report said 15 apartments, deemed a fire risk in 2020, was "unsafe" to live in.

A letter to residents said it was a "precautionary decision to extend the provision of alternative accommodation until January 2023".

Vivak Sharma, who has lived in the flats on Foundry Lane for 14 years, said it was a "big, heart-wrenching thing to be thrown out of your apartment".

He lives with his wife and their five-year-old son, and his three other children were due to return at Christmas.

The 56-year-old also owns four other apartments in the block, which he rents out.

He said it was a "distressing" time for his tenants, who were at first relocated to Gainsborough Sports Hall in east Ipswich, and then put into a budget hotel.

Alternative accommodation was still being found for them, he said.

"It's been a very stressful time and we've got Christmas coming up," he added.

The letter from management company Principle Estate told residents that contractors were on site to undertake surveys.

"While we await the outcome of the assessments and continue to try to get you back into your home as quickly as possible, being mindful of the busy time of the year, we have also taken the precautionary decision to extend the provision of alternative accommodation until January 2023," it said.

"While we hope things will not take this long, we don't want to have to ask you to move again in the meantime."

Grey GR, which owns the building, apologised for the disruption and inconvenience.

The company, which is owned by Railpen, the pension fund for railways workers, said it had "quickly" arranged temporary accommodation and residents were at first given a choice of hotel or apartment, and those asked to leave their homes had now been provided with serviced apartments.

It said it had put in place a six-person 24-hour waking watch service for the remaining residents.

"We continue to follow the advice of the fire and rescue service and are communicating regularly with them throughout this process.

"We are communicating directly with all leaseholders and our agents are supporting residents during this difficult period," a spokesperson added.

Following the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017, an assessment in October 2020 said "combustible materials" on the outside of the Ipswich Waterfront building "provide a route for fire to spread".

Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service said the new report, sent on 15 November, highlighted "issues in the upper part of the building that means it is currently unsafe for occupation".

Suffolk County Council, which runs the fire service, said the management company and Ipswich Borough Council were responsible for the work being carried out.

Ipswich Borough Council declined to comment further.

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]