Residents of evacuated Badalona building won't be able to return until roof is reinforced

Residents of the building evacuated in Badalona on Wednesday adjacent to the one that partially collapsed last week will not be able to return to their homes until work is done to strengthen the roof.

Badalona mayor Xavier Garcia Albiol explained the situation to the residents at a meeting on Wednesday evening.

Twenty families were removed from their homes after a crack was found in one of the apartments in the building next to the one that fell last week, causing the deaths of three people.

Residents will be able to enter the flats tomorrow to collect the necessary belongings, but they will not be able to stay there until the works are done. "The council cannot play with people's safety," Albiol said.

The mayor explained that the reinforcement works needed are not of great technical complexity, so he believes that they will not take long. In the meantime, the city council has offered accommodation to the twenty affected families, but most of them have chosen to stay with relatives or friends.

As for the works, Albiol made it clear that it is the owners who must take on the costs of the work. "We will help them, we will coordinate them, we will support them, but until these measures are implemented to ensure that the roofs do not fall, they will not be able to return to their homes," he added.

The council is also concerned about the rest of the blocks of flats from the same development as the one that collapsed and the one that has been evacuated.

Albiol announced that on Friday there will be a meeting with the Catalan government to look at the issue.