A large piece of metal falls from the top of Leicester’s Curve theater onto the pavement below

Pedestrians had a lucky escape when a massive strip of metal came loose from the front of the Curve theater and crashed onto the pavement below. The incident led to a large area of ​​Orton Square being cordoned off while a scaffolding structure with a wooden roof was erected to give spectators safe access to the Rutland Street building, which remains open.

The incident happened around 9 am on Saturday, May 4. Dylan Mathias, from St Georges Mill Residents Group, which represents people who live in the area, told LeicestershireLive that building inspectors at the scene later told him a man had almost been hit by the metal.

He said: “The lance fell down and when I went to see what had happened a building inspector told me it fell 10 seconds after a pedestrian had passed. You can see the gap where it came from and it was a big, big piece. metallic.

READ MORE: Baton Rouge country music bar to take over restaurant next to Curve theater

“Now I suppose they’re going to have to check everything to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Until it’s safe, there’s a whole section of the pedestrian area that’s closed and Queen Street is closed to traffic.”

When LeicestershireLive visited on Tuesday lunchtime, pedestrians on Halford Street could access the theater but could not enter Orton Square without detouring via Wigston Street and Rutland Street. And there was no pedestrian or vehicular access between Orton Square and the north side of Rutland Street leading to Humberstone Gate.

Mr Mathias said he had been told the restrictions would be in place for “a minimum of three weeks”. He said: “People in our building, which is on Wimbledon Street, have to walk a very long way to get to Halford Street now.”

People in the area spoke to LeicestershireLive on Tuesday about what happened. Alex Haswell, 22, who lives in the city centre, said: “Obviously it wasn’t very safe and now all the fences and road closures are going to be a problem.

“I’ve been to the theater a few times and I really like the design of the building. It fits well in the area and looks good – but it’s not good if the pieces fall!”

Mohammad Iqbal, 25, who lives in nearby St Matthews, added: “Sometimes you can hear the fins from the front of the building. I didn’t expect this to happen though – it’s very lucky no one was hurt. Do something to make sure it doesn’t happen again. It would look a bit silly if they had to remove all the fins.

The theater opened in 2008 – the same year as the Highcross center – and was designed by architect Rafael Viñoly. The building had an initial budget of around £26 million, but by the time it was completed it had risen to £61 million.

The Audit Commission, which oversaw public spending until 2015, said following an investigation that the overspending was due to construction work starting before the design had been completed.

Commenting on the fallen strip, Curve chief executive Chris Stafford said: “On Saturday 4th May one of the blinds fell from outside the Curve. No one was injured and the area around the building was cordoned off with the help of firefighters.

“We have since worked closely with our landlord, Leicester City Council, who have put in place fencing and temporary road and footpath closures while the cause of the problem is investigated. The area around and inside the building is safe and Curve is operating normally.”

A Leicester City Council spokesman said: “A cordon has been put in place around the Curve theater after a louvre came loose from the building and fell to the ground. The safety of the public is our main concern and we will carry out a full inspection of the building’s brise soleil to ensure that all blinds are secure.

“While the work is going on, safety fences will be installed. In the meantime, the theater is open as normal.”