Repairs on crash-damaged Bridge of Don home could take up to four weeks

Contractors estimate it might take up to four weeks to repair the house that was severely damaged after a car crashed into it yesterday.

Emergency services were called to the incident on Perwinnes Crescent in the Bridge of Don area of Aberdeen at around 3pm.

Images from the scene showed a black Vauxhall embedded into the side wall of the home, after it reportedly rolled down the slope from Perwinnes Rise and collided into it.

Fire crews cordoned off the area for safety reasons and worked for more than four hours to secure the building amid concerns it could collapse.

The owners of the house, who were not in at the time of the crash, were forced to spend the night in a hotel after the home was deemed unsafe.

Contractors begin repair works

A large hole could now be seen at the spot where the car crashed, with both vertical and horizontal cracks covering the remaining parts of the wall.

Contractors came to the house first thing in the morning to put up scaffolding and begin work on the repairs, which they believe will probably take at least three weeks.

Ross George, contracts manager and mason at Grampian Fireplaces and Stoves, was quick to gather his crew and come to the aid of the home owners.

He said: “I got the call in the middle of the night and I just knew we had to come and help. I pulled all other jobs, got all my guys and came here first thing in the morning.

“The most important thing was to secure the building so we needed to get the scaffolding up and put everything in place – sort out engineers, electricians and so on – quickly.

“There is severe damage to the wall, but the house has been very well constructed. If it wasn’t for the current regulations, it would have been way worse.

“We just wanted to help the family and make it as much stress-free for them as possible.”

Repairs could take up to a month

The family is now consulting with the contractors, as well as structural engineers, to figure out their next steps.

Last night, they told The P&J “it was shocking” that something like this could happen – just five months after they moved in.

Mr George added that he is determined to repair their home as quickly as possible.

He said: “They are very lucky the car landed between two expansion joints. It means we can just drop that section, and once we do that we will be able to see what the timber frame is like behind.

“As of now, it look like it’s only the downstairs that has taken impact.

“We reckon it would take about three to four weeks to sort all the paperwork and all the trades work, but it could be done quicker if we get the go ahead to do it.”