Damage to Sol Central's roof 'still being assessed' as poor weather drags on in Northampton

The major roads around Northampton's Sol Central building could be shut for the foreseeable future while contractors assess damage to the building's roof.

Marefair and Horsemarket remain shut today (February 10) after large panels from Sol Central's roof were dislodged in yesterday's high winds.

Dramatic videos shared online showed how the panels came crashing to earth on Marefair as the town was hit by 60mph winds.

Now, Sol Central's owners say they are still assessing the damage and are unable to say when it will be made safe.

A spokesman for owners Palace Capital PLC said: "We would like to thank the police and emergency services for their swift response to the incident over the weekend during Storm Ciara.

"We can confirm that the centre is open and fully operational with businesses trading as normal.

"However there is limited accessibility while external building assessments are being undertaken.

"We are actively working with the police, our tenants and our contractor to ensure public safety and will provide a further update once we have fully assessed the extent of the external damage to the building.”

All businesses at the complex, as well as the Ibis hotel in Marefair, remain open but are only accessible through the pedestrian routes in the car park. The main entrance remains shut.

Frequent showers are expected to last for the rest of today.