HEAVY winds destroyed the roof of a historic town centre building in Colchester which is home to a popular café.
Overnight gales caused tens of thousands of pounds worth of damage to the roofs of two properties in St John’s Street.
Essex Police have installed a cordon around the premises to keep the public at a safe distance whilst repairs are ongoing.
Nasuh Kahraman has run Jenkins Café from one of the buildings since 2010.
He said: “It happened overnight on Thursday last week.
“Police rang me at about midnight on Friday and I went down to the café with the fire service.
“They had to assess the building to check it was still safe for people to go inside.
“Police then put up the tape to keep people away.
“Our building is just a restaurant with a stock room upstairs so luckily no-one lives here. Nothing was damaged either.
“It was a bit of a lucky escape to be honest.
“I have seen my neighbour’s CCTV from when the roof tiles fell and you can see one fly off in to the street.
“If it had happened 20 seconds later there was someone walking past.”
Jenkins Cafe. Picture: Janet Dunne
Mr Kahraman is a tenant of the property and said his landlord had been extremely helpful since the damage occurred.
The building insurance will cover the repairs, which he says could cost as much as £20,000.
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Scaffolding was set up yesterday, with works to get underway soon.
Mr Kahraman said: “The damage is even worse to next door.
“The insurance company have said they will have to replace the whole roof.
“They have to get it done as soon as possible as it is a hazard.”
Jenkins Café has been shut since Christmas due to lockdown restrictions.
And Mr Kaharaman said he was relieved there were no customers around when the roof collapsed.
“The footfall was so low there wasn’t any point remaining open for takeaway,” he said.
“We feel relieved in a way. It is better this happened now whilst we are closed rather than when we have customers.
“It will all be fixed ready for when we plan to reopen on May 17.”
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