Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
An enormous sinkhole, which appeared in Godstone High Street, Surrey, just outside a branch of IBMG merchant Fairalls Builders Merchants, could take a year to be repaired.
The sinkhole was reported on Monday 17th February, and around 30 households in the immediate vicinity were evacuated. As yet, there is no indication when they might be able to return.
Toby Constable, managing director of IBMG SE Merchanting, said that the number of collections from the branch were down by around 75% in the first week, although things are starting to return to normal slowly. “They put gates at both ends of the High Street and that meant we couldn’t get HGVs in or out,” he told BMJ, adding that some access is likely to return in the next week or so.
Luckily for the company, its second Godstone branch, at Taylors Hill, is unaffected and is being used for deliveries. The High Street branch has a high percentage of locally-based retail sales as it’s the only DIY-type outlet in the town, and Constable expects these sales to return relatively quickly.
“It’s really not an ideal start to the year,” he added, “but we just have to be patient and work with the council, who, to be fair, are being very good with their communications. The trouble is, they don’t really know what caused it or how long it will take to repair. It could be months.”
Constable said that he is full of praise for the branch staff, operating under very difficult circumstances. “They’ve really stepped up to the challenge, particularly branch manager Mike Grange who has been a model of calm under pressure.”
