Tree smashes into pub as punters eat lunch during Storm Franklin
A pub was forced to close and customers were evacuated when a large tree fell onto the building and caused extensive damage during Storm Franklin.
The tree fell in the back garden of The Bell and Bear Inn on Gorsty Hill Road, Rowley Regis, and split at around 4pm on Sunday.
As well as smashing through part of the roof, the tree damaged the bedroom, the kitchen and living room, with the business forced to shut as a result.
It was one of several trees to come down across the region, with one family's new extension ruined and another couple blocked into their home by a tree which fell down as they settled in to watch Wolves.
There is no timescale for when The Bell and Bear will be able to reopen with manager David Clynshaw waiting to hear back from owners Star Pubs and Bar about repairs.
He said: "I had a phone call to say one of the trees has come down so I jumped in my car and had to come back from Surrey.
"It happened at about 4pm on Sunday afternoon and now there's a big old tree in the back garden and when it came down it completely split – and landed on the roof which has caused a hell of a lot of damage and holes in the roof.
"I've got a javelin spear of wood in my bedroom, damage in the kitchen and further damage to the living room. It's a bit of a nightmare.
"The pub was open at the time, we were trading. People were eating, staff were working and we had to close the pub down. We had to get people to finish off and then close.
"The fire brigade came out, water was leaking through [because of the storm] and we didn't know about electrical sparks (etc.). They made it all safe and got the debris off the roof as well. Staff were panicking but thankfully nobody was hurt or anything."
A maintenance team has visited the pub and assessed the property and has labelled it as a "priority" due to the extent of the damage, but the manager is still waiting guidance on the next step.
"We're waiting to see what's best to do – it could be a few days or it could be a week (before the pub can reopen), it's a nightmare," said Mr Clynshaw, who has been living at the pub for the last eight years,.
He had been visiting family in Surrey and had just finished off a Sunday roast when he received a phone call from his partner alerting him to the damage which left him "massively shocked," despite initially thinking she was joking.
"The damage is extensive and we're going to need scaffolding to come up around the outside (of the pub). We're going to need a tree surgeon too because there's still part of the tree in the garden which we need to take down ASAP. The tree is nearly as old as the pub and the tree trunk was very very thick."
