More masonry could fall from a building which caused catastrophic damage to a popular Perth pub, it is feared.
A chimney breast neighbouring The Venue in St John Street collapsed on Saturday night, narrowly missing smokers in the doorway.
There are concerns there could be a further collapse after building contractors discovered the structure had moved a further 4cm since the disaster.
Workers began dismantling the corner of the building on Tuesday morning in a bid to prevent it crashing to the ground below and a full structural assessment is currently under way.
Most of the street in front of the bar is cordoned off, although pedestrians were able to move between St John Street and St John’s Place via a narrow walkway.
A source close to the project said the situation was “very worrying”.
He said: “There’s been movement in the building next door overnight – about 4cm. They may have to close the road completely because there’s a chance it could come down.
“Most of the bricks (from the chimney collapse) came down at the back of the building and landed on a flat roof. The gable end on the other side (of The Venue) may have to come down if that’s moved as well.
“Currently they are clearing all the loose stuff from the building – that’s all coming off by hand. There will be scaffolding going in and they need to ensure none of it comes down on top of them.”
Although three people were initially made homeless because of the incident a further four people have been rehomed by Perth and Kinross Council following assessment of the properties.
A spokesman for Perth and Kinross Council said: “The owner of the property has the legal responsibility for the safety of the building structure and we understand that he instructed builders and a structural engineer who were on site yesterday, and we await feedback from them.
“The inner and outer safety cordons will remain in place and will be reviewed as appropriate.
“Three individuals were accommodated in temporary accommodation at the Salutation Hotel over the weekend. In all four households seven people were rehoused, with our support, by their landlord.”
The Venue’s owner Frank Burger-Seed said he hoped to be able to at least partially reopen the bar in the near future.
He said: “The structural engineer is trying to work out what is going on. We’ve been told to keep out of the front area of the bar.
“The back of the bar is a completely different building and that has been deemed safe so we are going to try and open that up if we get the go-ahead.”
The building’s owners could not be reached for comment.
