‘Total collapse’ of west London houses sees 40 neighbours evacuated

Around 40 neighbours had to be evacuated after two mid-terrace houses collapsed "from the roof to ground level" on a road in west London.

The two properties on Durham Place in Chelsea, which were undergoing renovation work, collapsed late on Monday evening, causing emergency services to evacuate nearby homes.

Nobody was thought to be hurt, according to the London Fire Brigade.

Station Commander Jason Jones, who attended the scene, said: "There was a total collapse of the building from the roof to ground level.

"Firefighters worked to make the scene safe and our drone team carried out a search.

"A police search dog also carried out an external search of the building and at this stage, there are no reports of any injuries."

Mr Jones added that nobody was thought to have been in the buildings when they collapsed.

A statement from the Metropolitan Police read: "Police were called at 23.25 on Monday, November 2, to reports of a building collapsed in Durham Place, SW3.

"The occupants of neighbouring properties have been evacuated as a precaution.

"At this stage, there are no reported injuries and nobody is thought to have been inside the building."

Emergency services were still at the scene on Tuesday morning, police said.

One seven-bedroom house a few doors down from those that collapsed sold last year with a value of around £16 million, according to figures on property website Rightmove.