Shopping centre remains closed after roof panel falls

A shopping centre in West Sussex will remain closed over the weekend after a panel fell from its roof.

The incident happened at Swan Walk Shopping Centre in Horsham on 11 July.

Nobody was injured, but the centre's management announced the temporary closure as a "precaution" while the matter was fully investigated.

"The safety of visitors, tenants and staff remains our highest priority," a spokesperson said.

An update on Friday said: "Swan Walk Shopping Centre will remain temporarily closed over the weekend while specialist inspections and assessments continue following the recent roof panel incident."

The car park remains open.

Visitors can access the town from the car park via Medwin Walk, with new signage being installed, the spokesperson said.

The statement added: "We appreciate this is an inconvenience to shoppers and our tenants and thank them for their patience and understanding.

"We are working with specialist contractors to establish the cause of the incident and will reopen the centre as soon as it is safe to do so."

A spokesperson for Gobsmack Comics, located inside the centre, said the closure was "devastating".

The centre is due to provide a further update on Monday.

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