Residents were left shocked after part of an abandoned pub building collapsed onto the pavement, narrowly missing a pensioner, and causing travel chaos to and from the city centre.
The front corner of the Farnworth Arms, located in Kensington, collapsed at around 2:30 pm, leading to Prescot Road being closed for health and safety reasons.
Eyewitness Norman Canavan, 65, from Kensington said: “I was crossing the road when it happened. It just missed an old lady and I had to drag her back.
“She was shaking like anything, hopefully she’s OK. I rang the fire brigade straight away. Someone could have died.”
Police and fire services arrived soon after the accident on the corner of Farnworth Road and Kensington, but luckily no-one was injured. However, major bus services were forced to divert their routes and motorists have been advised to avoid the area as nearby roads are sealed off.
A demolition crane later came to the scene to pull the rest of the structure down.
Locals claim that workmen had been removing scaffolding from the old pub on the day the building’s frontage collapsed.
Adam Roberts, 22, who works in nearby Davey’s Chemist, said: “About an hour after workmen took the scaffolding down it just fell. I heard a loud bang and just saw loads of rubble in the road. I was just on my way to the shop when it happened.”