HUGE chunks of heavy brickwork plunged to the ground from an Old Town pub yesterday... just yards from a crossing used by dozens of young schoolchildren.

Debris from the Royal Oak Pub, on Devizes Road in Old Town, came down shortly after 1pm, right in the middle of the lunch hour.

The pathway is close to Lethbridge Primary School and used by schoolchildren during term time. The weight of the rubble could have caused serious injury or even killed anyone walking by.

Rob Hillier, who was driving past when the brickwork collapsed, said: “I saw a cloud of dust by the pub.

“When I got closer I could see bricks all over the pavement and about half way across one of the lanes. Cars were having to swerve to avoid the rubble.

“As I got closer I could see there was a line of bricks across the road. It was so lucky that no-one was underneath or they would have been seriously hurt.”

The falling brickwork exposed rotting wood, raising fears more parts of the building may fall away. Barriers have been put up around the pub as a precaution while the extent of the damage and risk is assessed.

John Hyde, who has been manager of the pub for two and a half years said: “Unfortunately I have not had a chance to see the damage. The most important thing is that no-one was hurt. Trust Inns will now examine the damage and do what is needed to make sure the building is safe.”

The Royal Oak is a grade two listed building and some of the masonry that fell into the road dates back to the early nineteenth century.

It is primarily a live music venue and only opens on Fridays and Saturdays.

The road and path was cleared by passing council workers who were able to inform the pub’s owners.

“We saw all the bricks on the road and thought we couldn’t just leave it,” said Gary Cleaver, for Highway Maintenance. “If it had been left in the road it could easily have caused an accident. It’s lucky as it is that no-one was hurt.”