The body of a man was found in a flat in the Bronte House block of flats on Newport Road in Cardiff city centre on Friday evening and is believed to have been dead for some time
Residents of a Cardiff city centre apartment block are distraught after discovering the body of their neighbour in his flat. They believe he may have been dead for some time, leaving them to cope with a “foul smell” trapped in Bronte House on Newport Road, adding to the distress caused by the discovery of his body.
South Wales Police confirmed the sudden death of a man at a flat in Bronte House on Friday evening (March 21). There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death and his next of kin have been informed.
A mother of three living in the flats described the situation as “horrific situation”, causing distress for everyone involved, particularly as many families with young children reside in Bronte House. “It’s horrific,” said the resident, who wished to remain anonymous.
“There are so many words but none of them can adequately describe, first, the smell and secondly, the horrific oversight in obligation from the landlord.”
The resident claims that Linc Cymru, the housing association managing the flats, failed to address concerns about the smell over the weekend. Linc Cymru has apologised for “any upset they have suffered” and stated they will review their practices to see if improvements can be made, reports Wales Online.
Earlier in the week, neighbours began to notice an unpleasant odour. One local described her concern: “I thought it may be rubbish piled up by the door but I did start to think earlier this week that it doesn’t just smell like rubbish but something worse.”
Then on Friday evening, a neighbour knocked on her door with news that the police would be entering a flat due to worries about a resident’s welfare. Following their grim discovery, she was told that their neighbour had sadly passed away and was warned the smell would “significantly worse”.
As the evening unfolded, the flat’s door remained open for hours while police and the coroner conducted their inquiries and later removed the body. The police assured the community that the property had been secured, promising the odour would lessen.
Yet, the local said by Saturday morning the situation was “much worse”. According to her, the door’s security was “inadequately” handled, with sizeable gaps letting the stench filter through the corridor and into other homes.
Following a distressing observation of the secured door, she reached out to Linc Cymru seeking aid in what she called an “extremely distressing” ordeal. Concerned about both health risks and the impact on her family, she explained: “I was worried that it’s a health hazard and it’s also personally distressing, especially because I have my children here with me,”.
The resident expressed her dismay as Linc reportedly told her that no deep cleaning could be arranged until the next working day, which was Monday, March 24. Despite her concerns about the door and the lingering odour, she claims to have received no further response except a note stating that Linc had visited and would not return over the weekend.
She shared her frustration: “I understand that cleaning crews may not be able to be instructed until Monday but the door being like that is contributing to the problem and they know there is no ventilation in the hallway. [Linc] have an obligation but they don’t seem interested. I’m not surprised unfortunately but I am horrified.”
Adding insult to injury, the resident lives on Newport Road, the same street where Linc’s offices are located. Linc informed WalesOnline that their teams had secured the door by Monday.
The situation has also taken an emotional toll on her nine year old child, who has been left in tears, prompting questions the mother feels uneasy to answer. She explained: “I wasn’t able to take her to school on Monday because we’d have to walk through the corridor,” adding, “I didn’t want to do that, drop her off and tell her to have a nice day when she’s been putting out with this.”
A representative for Linc Cymru expressed their condolences, stating: “Our thoughts and sympathies go to everyone affected by these sad events, to the family and friends of the deceased, and to his neighbours who have been affected. We received notice from South Wales Police of their attendance late on Friday night via our out of hours service. They advised that the property had been secured, and no further action was required by us at that time.”
The spokesperson detailed the procedure followed, explaining, “Normal practice is to wait for confirmation that it is okay to gain access without risk of interfering with any ongoing investigations. Arrangements were made for the property to be inspected and our teams have been on site on Monday to make the door fully secure and to arrange a deep clean of the property. Our neighbourhood team have also spoken with residents who have contacted us and offered full support.”
They continued, acknowledging the impact on the community: “We fully understand that this has been a difficult weekend for residents and apologise for any upset they have suffered. As is always the case, we will review our processes and actions across the weekend to identify if there was anything we could do better. If anybody living at Bronte House requires any further support, we would urge them to reach out to us directly, we are here to help.”
A representative for South Wales Police confirmed: “South Wales Police can confirm the sudden death of a man found at a flat in Bronte House, Newport Road, Cardiff, on Friday evening (March 21). There are no suspicious circumstances and enquiries are on-going. Next of kin has been informed.
“Officers from the local Neighbourhood Policing Team have visited the flats following concerns raised by residents and the housing provider has also been updated.”
