A great-grandmother is still waiting for her garden wall to be repaired after it was knocked down in a storm last year. Maureen Sears, a tenant, says her tortoises can’t roam freely in her garden due to the potential “escape route” through the gap.
The tortoises are currently confined to three pens in the garden of her home in Ffordd Tudor in Holyhead during the day when they would normally have free rein.
Mrs Sears, 77, was hospitalised last November following a cancer diagnosis which resulted in part of her colon being removed. Upon her return home she discovered her breeze block wall had been toppled over during a storm. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here.
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Having lived in her home for 47 years Mrs Sears attributes the instability of the wall to the lack of footings. She said an inspector visited her property in April and she’s still awaiting repairs nine months after the storm caused the damage.
“I was in hospital when the wall fell,” she told NorthWalesLive. “I didn’t know anything about it until I came home. The wall is just as it had fallen. They hadn’t put footings in it [when it was built originally].”
However Mrs Sears says her three tortoises Bosun, who is about 60 years old and “as big as a dinner plate”, Esmerelda, and Torty cannot leave their night time pens during the day while the wall is down.
“Normally Bosun can even come up the steps into the house but they are scratching each other in their little ‘summer houses’,” Mrs Sears explained. She has faced a series of health issues including a fall near Specsavers earlier this year that resulted in a broken wrist.
Caergybi councillor Pip O’Neill said: “When priorities come in they have to be dealt with accordingly. I think she has found her case being pushed down the line.
“It’s unfortunate it has taken as long as it has. I’m hoping it can be done this week.”
He added: “I think the issue here is communication. This is something which the county council can improve.”
In November the UK was hit by Storms Bert and Conall. December saw Storm Darragh cause widespread disruption with power cuts, travel cancellations, and property damage.
A rare red weather warning was issued for parts of Wales indicating a danger to life from strong winds, flying debris, and large waves.
A spokesman for Anglesey Council said on Tuesday: “The council’s housing maintenance and repairs team was first notified about the garden wall on February 22, 2025.
“An inspection took place on April 2, 2025, and follow-on works were raised the following day and allocated to a subcontractor.
“The subcontractor confirmed a start date of August 20, 2025, to carry out the repairs, and the tenant was advised of this last week (August 15).
“The contractor is due to begin work tomorrow and will remain on site until the repair is completed. All groundworks of this nature are normally given a three-month priority unless inspectors identify an immediate hazard.”
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