Part of damaged former pub demolished

Part of the historic building in a Herefordshire town badly damaged by yesterday’s fatal bin lorry crash has been demolished for safety reasons.

Much of the right-hand ground floor of the three-storey, grade II listed building at the Bridge Street / Mill Street mini-roundabout in Leominster was destroyed in the tragic accident, the cause of which remains unclear.

A spokesperson for Herefordshire Council, which is responsible for building safety in the county, said: “Partial demolition took place this morning for safety reasons.”

“Any future actions will be based on public safety grounds, and we are working with the owner to make the site safe,” they added.

“We would of course always want to preserve historic buildings as much as possible but we must balance this with public safety needs.”

An excavator from Wye Valley Demolition could still be seen next to the building this afternoon. The roads at the roundabout have also been cleared of debris, though they remain closed to through traffic for now. Police remain in attendance.

Jeremy Milln, chair of the Hereford Civic Society, conservation archaeologist and former county councillor, thought the 18th-century building, formerly the Golden Lion pub, then an antique shop, could and should still be repaired.

“It should be properly assessed first,” he said.

“Historic England need to be consulted, along with amenity societies like the Georgian Society. It’s a legal obligation.”

Leominster Civic Society chair John Farrar said it would be “disappointing to lose a fine example of a Georgian Inn at a prominent spot”.

But he acknowledged it “would cost a small fortune” to restore what has lately been an empty building.