Girl, 10, injured as banqueting suite ceiling collapses

A 10-year-old girl was treated for a minor facial injury caused by glass after part of the ceiling of a banqueting suite collapsed.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said hundreds of people were inside the venue in Small Heath, Birmingham, which was hosting a school presentation evening.

Paramedics also treated a man in his 20s and a young boy for leg pain after being called to the Al Miraj Banqueting Suites shortly before 8.00pm on Thursday.

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman said: “Upon arrival, ambulance staff found hundreds of people outside the venue who had managed to escape after the ceiling had collapsed. Working in partnership with police and fire, five casualties were quickly identified and received immediate treatment by ambulance staff.”

The spokeswoman said a 10-year-old girl was treated for minor facial injuries before being taken to Heartlands Hospital.

Meanwhile, a nine-year-old girl and a woman in her 40s were treated for the effects of shock but did not require hospital treatment.

The spokeswoman added: “The Trust’s Hazardous Area Response Team paramedics, who are specially trained with urban search and rescue capabilities, worked with the fire service inside the venue to help conduct a search for any potential people trapped inside. Thankfully, everyone had managed to escape and there were no further patients found.

“Whilst we treated six people following the incident, it was incredibly lucky that no-one was more seriously or even fatally injured.”

A spokesman for the venue said officials were waiting for a health and safety officer to inspect a large section of suspended ceiling – made from plasterboard – which had collapsed.

The suite is understood to have been hosting a graduation and awards ceremony for the Tyseley-based Al Ameen Islamic primary school.