‘A few seconds later and we would have died’: Couple’s narrow escape as scaffolding collapses just inches from them and crashes down on top of parked cars in Fulham street where Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood lives
- Nicole Brown, 24, and her girlfriend Layla Galvin, 34, sprinted from the spot
- Layla heard a ‘crackling’ noise coming from the tilting scaffolding block
- The collapse comes as howling 65mph winds batter Britain’s towns and cities today
Two executive assistants’ lives flashed before their eyes when the scaffolding tower they were standing under collapsed.
Nicole Brown, 24, and her girlfriend Layla Galvin, 34, avoided death by ‘a few seconds’ when they sprinted from the spot which the structure crashed down upon the Fulham road where Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood lives, this morning.
Moments after stepping out of an Uber, which had driven the couple from Chelsea, Layla heard a ‘crackling’ noise coming from the tilting scaffolding block which was looming towards them.
Two executive assistants’ lives flashed before their eyes when the scaffolding tower they were standing under collapsed
They sprinted from the spot which the structure crashed down upon on Holland Road in Fulham, this morning
Describing the moment they were standing under the collapsing tower, Nicole told MailOnline: ‘It was terrifying. You don’t really think about it, you’re speechless, it takes your breath away.’
‘Everything flashes in front of you. Layla’s got kids, you know? It was petrifying and we’re very shaken up.
‘If we had been there literally a few seconds later we would have died.’
Nicole said that when Layla heard the creaking coming from the swaying scaffolding block, she shouted at her to ‘f***ing run’.
Then they heard an enormous crash as the metal rods and wooden planks smashed on to the road and the cars below.
Several cars including a Toyota, Ford and Peugeot have sustained damage, according to Nicole.
She added that because they were so shaken up her and Layla went straight inside and did not call anyone, but the police arrived soon to cordon off the street.
Nicole (left) said that when Layla (right) heard the creaking coming from the swaying scaffolding block, she shouted at her to ‘f***ing run’
Nicole said that conditions in Fulham were gusty this morning, but blames J Plackett for failing to fasten the structure to the wall securely
And she said that a truck emblazoned with the company name J Plackett Scaffolding pulled up very quickly after the collapse to begin clearing up the mess.
But when with the women went outside to confront their staff about their horrifying ordeal, Nicole claims one of them just ‘shrugged’.
Nicole said that conditions in Fulham were gusty this morning, but blames J Plackett for failing to fasten the structure to the wall securely.
She said: ‘It was really windy, but not enough to tip over scaffolding, it must been tied on badly.’
MailOnline contacted J Plackett who said they were too busy dealing with the incident to provide comment.
The collapse comes as howling 65mph winds batter Britain’s towns and cities today.
A truck emblazoned with the company name J Plackett Scaffolding pulled up very quickly after the collapse to begin clearing up the mess