RESIDENTS living on an estate where a grandmother was crushed to death by a faulty lift have spoken of the horrific incident and called for action from Redbridge Council.

People living on the Orchard Estate in Woodford Green say urgent work must be done to make their homes safe after grandmother-of-seven Christine Allen, 50, died when the lift she entered in the Lambourne House tower block malfunctioned.

Around four people witnessed Mrs Allen's death, including family friend and neighbour Paul Cole, 35.

He said: “The lift itself was still moving when Christine got in and she panicked and tried to get out.

“I don't know if she fell over or what happened after that but the lift was still going up.

“I've lived in this estate for eight years and the lifts are always broken.

“One door will open while the other stays shut and if it's not one block it's another.”

Jason Pearce, 20, was also at the scene and called an ambulance for Mrs Allen.

He said: “We want justice for Christine and her family.

“The council know it's not safe here but they don't live here so they don't care.

“The image of Christine's death will stay with me for the rest of my life and there's no way I can ever forget.

“I just feel like I'm going to wake up from a bad dream but I'm not.”

Neighbour Carole Conway, 41, said: “The lifts break all the time and they just patch them up and that's it.

“It's unbelievable that this has happened and the council are just hiding their faces.

“It could have been anyone in that lift.”

Clay Senghore, 46, from the Coopersale building on the estate, said: “It's the same in my building and the lifts get stuck all the time.

“I got stuck in one just the other day and I'm partially blind.

“We're always complaining to the council.”

Redbridge Council and Redbridge Homes, who manage the estate, are refusing to issue anything more that a two-line statement while an investigation takes place.

A spokeswoman said: “Like the residents of Lambourne Court, we were shocked by this tragic death.

“Our sympathy is with the family and Redbridge Council and Redbridge Homes will be working closely with the Health and Safety Executive to find out exactly how this happened.”