THE historic town hall building in Montgomery was struck by a lorry last week.

The corner of the building, the only Georgian town hall in Montgomeryshire, was damaged when a lorry struck it twice.

The driver was attempting to negotiate the tight turn into Kerry Street to drive onwards to deliver fabricated steel but was unable to complete the manoeuvre and struck the historic building twice with protruding steel girders.

The event was witnessed by residents who were shopping at the time.

Witness Andy Hughes said: "We thought the driver was going to drive off, but he did stop, and we called one of our town councillors who took all the relevant details.”

The driver, who hailed from Wolverhampton, explained he had been advised to use that route by one of his colleagues, who had previously delivered a similar load to the same location.

He was directed down the alternative and more appropriate route.

The Town Hall was built in 1748 to replace an earlier guildhall which previously stood in the middle of Broad Street.

In 1828, in the reign of George IV, the old upper storey was taken down and rebuilt to accommodate the quarter sessions which were still held in Montgomery at that time.

The Grade II listed building is currently not able to be used due to Covid restrictions, although the public toilets to the rear are separately open daily.

The council’s insurers will now appoint a loss adjuster who will be examining the damage, and the repairs will be carried out and paid for through an insurance claim from the haulage firm.