Fire safety concerns have resulted in an apartment block in Sheffield being evacuated, after fire safety inspectors found that the sprinkler systems were not working
Residents were asked to leave the Riverside House building on Mowbray Street on 15 April 2026, as per the terms of a Prohibition Notice issued by South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (SYFRS).
As reported by Yorkshire Live, a spokesperson for the service said: "On Wednesday 15 April 2026, business fire safety inspectors served a Prohibition Notice on Riverside Apartments on Mowbray Street, Sheffield.
"The notice prohibits sleeping within the residential flats at any time due to inadequate means of escape.”
Apartment managers, Barnsdales, reportedly offered residents £60 per night to find alternative accommodation and said it was “committed to resolving the situation”.
However, tenants have since shared their struggles in finding suitable accommodation while the notice remains in force. One resident, Peter Jones, told BBC News: "The management company should have some form of insurance to at least put us up in temporary accommodation. Residents are being buffeted around without any clear resolution."
Jones added: "There are five flats upstairs with one entrance and exit, so getting access to those top floors if there was a fire in the corridor area would be extremely difficult, so I do understand the fire brigade's decision, but we've been caught on the back foot.”
A spokesperson for Barnsdales said that the company was working closely with all stakeholders, including SYFRS, fire safety experts, and specialist mechanical engineers, “to address the prohibition notice and all concerns raised”.
"We continue to communicate with all tenants and are 100% committed to bringing the situation to satisfactory closure for all involved.
"A strategy to mitigate the risk to life has been proposed to South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue for review, and we await their decision."
SYFRS said that the Prohibition Notice would remain in force until the fire safety defects had been remediated and the notice was withdrawn.
"Business fire safety officers will continue to work with the business to support them in resolving the above issue, and to enable the notice to be lifted,” the service added.