Patients evacuated and scans cancelled after Stockport hospital ceilings fell in

Exclusive: Ceilings in two units in Stepping Hill hospital collapsed days apart including in critical care unit

Parts of ceilings have fallen in at two key units of a decrepit NHS hospital, forcing it to evacuate patients and cancel X-rays and scans, the Guardian can reveal.

The problems at Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport, which is plagued by leaks and major structural defects, have prompted claims it is now “dangerous for both patients and staff”.

It had to close its Outpatient B unit last November after inspectors reported a “significant deterioration of the structure of the building”

It is providing only 51% of the outpatient appointments it should because some of the services that were provided in that now-mothballed unit are now operating at less than the previous capacity

Staff in some areas have to form “bucket squads” when it rains to stop water causing flooding and affecting vital equipment

It has had to reschedule 99 operating theatre sessions – involving orthopaedics, general surgery and gynaecology – while it builds a new emergency and urgent care campus