Did Kelpies work cause cracks?

Angry residents want developers to help them deal with the damage to their homes they say was caused by construction work at the Kelpies.
By The Newsroom
Published 1st Feb 2016, 16:00 BST
Residents claim construction works carried out at Helix and the Kelpies caused cracks to appear in their homesResidents claim construction works carried out at Helix and the Kelpies caused cracks to appear in their homes
Residents claim construction works carried out at Helix and the Kelpies caused cracks to appear in their homes

Householders in Glensburgh Road, Grangemouth, want Balfour Beatty to honour the agreement they said it made with them back in 2012 before work began on the £13.4 million Helix Canal project, which was constructed near their homes.

The scheme saw Balfour Beatty construct a new lock and extend the existing canal.

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Ella Ferguson (59) said: “We all had our houses surveyed by a team from Balfour Beatty before the work started and they promised us any damage caused by the work would be taken care of by them.

“I stupidly took them at their word.”

When work began Mrs Ferguson and her neighbours were shocked at the impact it was having on their homes.

She said: “The first morning the piling started I jumped out of bed – I actually thought it was an earthquake because the whole house was vibrating. It went on for months but we thought, we can live with this because if anything needs fixed Balfour Beatty will take care of it.

“There were two big cracks to the roughcasting to the front of the house and two at the back. There are cracks all around our house and our neighbours are the same. There are at least four houses on this street damaged by the construction work.

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“Balfour Beatty carried out surveys again and we got an official statement from them saying they were not accepting responsibility for the damage.

“We’ve had an estimation the repair work would cost £3500. For the last three winters we have had this problem of water leaking into the house because of these cracks. Our neighbours are elderly and they are in the same situation with water coming in, it’s such a shame.

“Falkirk Council has provided us with support through this and has been a good help.”

A Falkirk Council spokesman said: “We are aware Balfour Beatty and the home owners have been involved in discussions to get a resolution to the situation. In our opinion the dispute is contractual and we are optimistic it will be resolved to everyone’s satisfaction.”

Balfour Beatty had still to respond with a comment on the matter as The Falkirk Herald went to press.

Related topics:GrangemouthFalkirk Council