01 March 2023 , 11:14
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A mum narrowly escaped catastrophic injuries after her damp-ridden bathroom ceiling collapsed right in front of her.
Daisy Lovering was luckily unscathed after heavy debris of sodden plasterboard came raining down inches from her face and into the tub where her young daughter had been bathing shortly before.
The 22-year-old had already noticed damp seeping its way through the ceiling in December, and had been trying to get help from her housing association for weeks before the accident.
Daughter Darcey Cook, five, had been in the bath shortly before it collapsed, with Daisy terrified of what could have happened if she'd been in the room at the time.
Daisy's daughter Darcey had been in the bath shortly before the ceiling collapsed into the tub (Media Wales)The mum had woken in the early hours hearing loud drips at the flat in Neath Port Talbot, Wales, and got up to inspect, only to find water pouring down.
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"I took a step back and a second later the whole ceiling collapsed," she said.
"If I hadn't moved or checked just a second later, the whole ceiling would have been on top of me.
"What really got me was my daughter had been in the bath just a few hours before and that could have landed on her.
"If it had, that would have killed her, I am sure. It was so heavy because it was soaking wet.
"It's terrifying to think about what could have happened to her.
"We had to get up in the middle of the night and find somewhere else to stay."
The ceiling collapsed after a leak in the flat upstairs, which is privately rented meaning Daisy's housing association can't do anything (Media Wales)Daisy, a PT apprentice, said she started to notice the problem in December. It hadn't been too bad at first, but later called her housing association a few weeks later as it got worse.
"I asked them to call me before they came because I work and would need to arrange for someone to be there.
"But they didn't and I just got a text saying sorry we missed you.
"I called them and they said they would come back in a week or two.
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"But drips had started coming through the ceiling by this point so I called again and told them it's an emergency.
"They said they didn't have anyone who could come out so there was nothing I could do. This should never have happened."
Daisy had been complaining about the leak for weeks and told there was nothing she could do (Media Wales)Following the catastrophe, someone was sent to Daisy's flat to clean the mess, but because the flat above is privately rented, she's been told the problems can't be fixed until their landlord has fixed the leak upstairs.
"If he turns his water on, the drips start coming through again. It's so scary having to use the bathroom."
The smell coming from the bathroom meanwhile is "terrible", she added, and despite reassurances the ceiling was secure, she's still worried to go in the room.
"Even though they assured me it was secure I still worry about it with my daughter and just want to get in and out and quick as possible.
"I'm on edge all the time and it's really hard with my daughter."