Neighbours woken by huge crash in middle of night as wall of house collapses

Residents were woken by a massive crashing sound in the middle of night as the collapsed during nearby building work.

Neighbours from a row of converted barns in Worton, near Cassington, in Oxfordshire heard the noise at 2am on October 28. They immediately went downstairs and noticed all the lights on in The Tithe Barn - the that sustained the damage. One person, who asked not to be named, said: "We went out into the driveway with torches to see the owners of The Tithe Barn also there and immediately saw the.

"We were in complete shock at what we saw with the collapsed gable end wall strewn across the driveway and blocking the access to two of the four dwellings at Jericho Farm Barns. We were all thankful that, other than shocked and distressed, nobody was injured. Had this happened in daylight hours, with cars and people using the driveway, we could possibly be looking at a very different and possibly tragic situation."

The resident added: "There is still danger with an overhang of masonry at The Tithe Barn which the insurance company want taken down before they will allow the removal of the rubble in the driveway."

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A nearby property is undergoing extensive works to build out the basement - which was given planning permission by West Oxfordshire District Council earlier this year. There were objections from neighbours and Cassington Parish Council who warned of risk of damage to existing buildings and some flooding history of the site.

Recommending approval, a planning officer wrote: "The risk of damage to existing buildings has been raised. This is not a planning matter. Should damage occur to neighbouring properties during or after construction, this would be a civil matter to be dealt with between the relevant parties."

Another resident, who also asked not to be named, said: "It appears to us that there could be a very real danger to adjoining properties and that a similar fate awaits as tremors and vibrations continue to come from the excavation site. The 94-year old who lived next door spoke of how frightened she was when she first heard the creaking noises.

"The vibrations have been going on for months and months and months - and the noise that we’ve all had to live through. We think there’s probably a further year’s work and the noise and the pile driving and the vibrations have been horrendous right through the summer. The hole they have dug out is vast. We have had surveyors out to monitor our property. We look at the walls every day to see if any cracks have appeared."