The Sheffield office of national giant Irwin Mitchell has been thrown into disarray after it was caught in the extreme flooding that hit the north of England this week.
The site’s lower floors and lift-shaft suffered serious damage after the River Don burst its banks, with around 20,000 sq ft – eqquivalent to 20% of the firm’s total 150,000 sq ft site – affected.
Irwin Mitchell, which currently has more than 1,100 professional staff based in the city, relocated around 200 employees to its other offices across the UK in a bid to continue business as usual.
Staff pitched in to clear mud and water out of the building after the flooding, which has already claimed four lives this week, including two deaths in Sheffield. The firm, which moved into the prestigious river-side premises less than two years ago, expects to resume normal service later this week.
Irwin Mitchell managing partner Howard Culley said: “The firm would like to…thank all its staff who worked tirelessly, sometimes in unpleasant conditions, to restore services and also those who have overcome major difficulties in order to return to work.”
In anticipation of further flooding in the region this weekend, the Environment Agency has issued 12 severe flood warnings and 67 standard flood warnings.
