A window pane fell from a luxury apartments development site a year before one caused the death of a pedestrian, it has been revealed.
Mick Ferris, 53, died on Tuesday when a sheet of glass plummeted 250 feet from a London tower block, the Corniche development on the capital’s Albert Embankment.
It has now been revealed that in August last year, with The Times reporting that a window “slipped from its mounting” at another flat on the development, “narrowly missing” two workers and smashing on the pavement.
Confirming the incident to the paper, a spokesperson for St James, the owner of the multi-million pound development, said: “A casement window fell from the upper floor. No one was hurt.
“There was a full investigation instigated by St James, after which the design was amended in accordance with the expert advice received.”
St James, part of the Berkeley group, has been investigating the incident and working with police.
James Corden was among the people who paid tribute to the 53-year-old, who was a lifelong West Ham fan.
“I’m so saddened by the passing of Mick Ferris,” he wrote on Twitter. “He was a huge West Ham fan and has passed away in the most sudden of circumstances.
“My thoughts are with his family and everyone who knew him. None of us are promised tomorrow. Tell your loved ones you love them today x x x.”
Ferris, who lived in Kent, is believed to have been with colleagues at the time of the incident, with several Clarkes’ coaches lined up near to the scene.
Reporters saw a woman rush towards one of the stationary coaches and ask “where’s my old man?” before the doors were closed.
A colleague aboard a Clarkes’ coach – which carried a plaque stating the driver’s name as “Mick” – said he was a lovely man to work with.
“Mick was a real nice fella - what happened is tragic,” he said.
“He was a lovely man, words fail me.”
Investigators erected a forensics tent at the scene later on Tuesday, with officers seen peering out of an empty window within a penthouse apartment on the tower’s 27th floor.