‘They were not even in contact, not even an email or phone call to ask if we were okay. Nothing’
Abigail Neep South West Regional News Reporter
07:58, 07 May 2026
The controlled explosion of a WW2 bomb took place in Southway today(Image: William Dax / SWNS)
A housing association has apologised after a family who were evacuated during the Plymouth bomb drama last week criticised the way they were treated.
A huge 250kg explosive device was found at a building site in Southway last Wednesday (April 29). Emergency services placed a 400m cordon around the site, leading to the evacuation of over 1,200 homes.
Wayne, his wife and three children, who live in Langley Crescent, were advised to evacuate on Wednesday. They secured a last-minute, expensive caravan in Looe Bay to ensure the children had separate bedrooms.
Wayne, 41, said there was no financial support from Westward Housing, which he said added to the significant stress of having to leave his home.
“Westward hasn’t paid for that. We’ve had to pay for that out of our money,” Wayne told PlymouthLive.
“When we spoke to them, they turned around and said, ‘It’s kind of the City Council’s job to rehouse you temporarily.’ I feel that is poor as they are our landlords.”
Wayne also claims Westward Homes did not reach out to him and his family to check on them while they were displaced.
He said: “Westward were not even in contact, not even an email or phone call to ask if we were okay. Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”
He compared his experience with that of tenants from other housing providers.
“I highly praise Plymouth Community Homes, and I’m not even a tenant. [One of their residents] was given £45 travelling fees, hotels, food, breakfast this morning… that’s from Community Homes. That’s not even Plymouth City Council.”
During a press conference held after the bomb was detonated on Friday morning, Councillor Sally Haydon also praised Plymouth Community Homes for their efforts.
Cllr Sally Haydon said: “Plymouth Community Homes have been brilliant with their residents as well.”
Wayne said the evacuation had severe consequences for his health as he requires daily injections to keep his lungs functioning.
He claims he was refused access to his property at the cordon on Thursday morning to collect his medication.
He claims his seven-year-old daughter, who is coeliac, also struggled, as the family was unable to grab any gluten-free food in the rush to evacuate.
He added that the experience left his and his wife’s anxiety levels “through the roof.”
Westward apologised for the “less than positive experience” that Wayne had.
A spokesperson for Westward Housing said: “I am extremely sorry to hear that a customer had a less than positive experience of our support during the Southway bomb evacuation. Our teams worked hard on-site and remotely to collaborate with the excellent work that was being done by Plymouth City Council.
“We had 53 households of our customers in three streets at Southway affected by the evacuation last week. We worked closely with Plymouth City Council who took the lead in supporting Westward to move any of our households in need, into temporary accommodation. We also offered accommodation and support to all our customers who contacted us directly.
“We had 8 customer households referred to us by the council and when we contacted them, 5 had already been offered somewhere to stay, the remaining 3 we were able to help with temporary accommodation. We also offered household support fund payments to any customers who let us know that they needed financial support.
“We had colleagues on site at Southway Community Centre on both days, identifying and speaking to Westward customers there to proactively ask if they needed somewhere to stay temporarily and if they needed financial support.
“We shared official information on social media and when the cordon was lowered on Friday we contacted all those customers affected with offers of taxis home and financial support if required. Our out of hours manager overnight was fully informed and ready to help anyone displaced by the evacuation.
“We also emailed all households involved and asked them to contact us through the bank holiday weekend if they got home and found any issues. We explained that there is 24 hour cover and that we could provide support.
“That Friday evening email to all those affected also sought to provide reassurance on structural assessment of the properties and what to do if at all concerned. Reassuring our customers and ensuring they were settled back safely was important.”
