THOUSANDS of pounds worth of damage was caused when scaffolding and a temporary roof crashed into a town's main shopping street early yesterday.

Engineers will this morning begin assessing the damage caused to Middle Street, in Consett, County Durham.

Early indications are that the bill for clearing the wreckage will be thousands of pounds.

No one was injured in the incident, which took place shortly before 1am yesterday.

Police had to cordon off part of the pedestrianised street, and nine businesses, including Greggs, Superdrug and Lunn Poly, remained closed all day, costing thousands in lost takings.

Workers from Castleshop Fittings have been repairing the roof of the Britannia Arcade over the past few weeks, and yesterday's high winds tore a temporary covering off the Victorian building, which dragged scaffolding and debris into the street.

Health and Safety Executive officials visited the site yesterday, and an investigation is under way.

Inspector Robert Hirst said: "The wind has got under the roof covering and brought the scaffolding down with it.

"We have now completed our initial investigations at the scene and we will now be looking at the underlying issues behind the incident."

County council engineers began the process of clearing the debris and will return today to assess the damage.

The fall damaged a street light, benches, litter bins and block paving, but narrowly missed neighbouring properties.

A Britannia Building Society spokesman said: "Fortunately, it was in the early hours so there were no injuries."