Two men hit by falling masonry during demolition work at Clune Park

Two men have been injured while working on the demolition of a derelict housing estate dubbed ‘Scotland’s Chernobyl’.

Police were called to Clune Park in Inverclyde around 3pm on Friday after the men, aged 31 and 20, were struck by a piece of falling masonry.

The pair were taken to the Royal Alexandra Hospital for treatment.

The incident comes as the long-awaited demolition got underway at the site with a fire-damaged church the first building to be torn down.

It is part of the first phase of demolition works, which will also see an old primary school building and an initial 138 properties across 15 tenement blocks razed to the ground.

There are around 430 residential properties across 45 tenement blocks in total at Clune Park, most of which are or were privately-owned.

Dangerous buildings notices were served following extensive investigations by council building standards officers and external surveyors.

Councillor Stephen McCabe, leader of Inverclyde Council, said: “While the former church, school and initial batch of residential properties are being demolished on safety grounds, this is a significant milestone nonetheless.

“Clune Park was once a thriving and desirable community but sadly most of the properties are now beyond repair for a variety of reasons.

“However, Clune Park is in a great location with excellent transport links and can rise from the ashes and become a good place to live once again.

“The demolition works are the first key step towards achieving that goal of regenerating Clune Park and attracting the investment required to build quality, affordable housing for the people of Port Glasgow and Inverclyde.”

The first tranche of flats to be demolished is opposite the former church building.

The properties will be knocked down after the former church and school buildings have been dismantled.

Work is being carried out by Greenock-based company Caskie Limited.

Inverclyde Council has been acquiring properties in Clune Park for several years and now owns a significant proportion of the estate.

The vast majority of the estate is derelict and the residential blocks, former school and the old church buildings have all been badly affected by deliberate fires and anti-social behaviour.

A new Clune Park masterplan was approved by the council in November 2023 with the ultimate aim of demolishing the estate and building up to 165 new, affordable homes for social rent.

The masterplan is subject to a variety of factors, including securing ownership of the remainder of the estate, obtaining planning permission, and attracting the necessary external funding to build new homes.

A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: “Around 3pm on Friday, May 2, 2025, police were made aware two men, aged 31 and 20, had been injured at a premises at Montgomerie Street, Port Glasgow.

“Emergency services attended and both were taken to Royal Alexandra Hospital for treatment.

“The Health and Safety Executive has been informed.”