About 1:30am this morning we were woken with the most almighty crash. We couldn’t work out what the noise was, until we looked into the study. A 3m / 10ft bank of cupboards had come off the wall, turned half a somersault, and ended up, upside down, doors half open, contents spilling everywhere, delicately balanced on the desks and the arms of the chairs.
Well, nothing much you can do at 1:30am, so we went back to bed. Although I did take a photograph and send it to my son in NZ, which made him smile anyway!
When we investigated at 8am, we found that all sort of contents had spewed onto the floor. Unfortunately all my husband’s special mugs / glasses that he had collected over the years were broken, so the first 30 minutes were spent vacuuming the debris before we could investigate further. In addition, the cupboards were pretty unstable and still very heavy. They were IKEA about 10 years ago, and the cupboards and shelves alone are heavy let alone the contents!
Amazingly the monitor survived!
Then my husband had the bright idea to start from the back. so we took the backs off the cupboards, empty the contents, then disconnect it from the next in the chain etc etc.
Some 2 hours later, we had cleared the majority of the stuff. However then we realised the enormity of the risk we had been living with for 10 years, and how lucky we had been. Bluntly put – it obviously was not our night to be injured / die… Picture the situation. Two people working away on PC’s, a huge weight of 3m cupboards land on them. The door is shut. The cupboards block the door. The phone is under the cupboards. Unlikely that anyone will be concerned until husband doesn’t turn up for his flight 36 hours later…. Doors all locked. Several days later, Police and Fire Brigade break in…..
Wow – has that just brought it home to us, how simply problems can happen?
So now – we may put back one or 2 cupboards, not 4. We have a similar set of cupboards in our spare bedroom. We need to empty and dismantle them. And we seriously need to de-clutter. As we investigate the contents of the cupboards, we keep saying – why do we still have this? A computer mouse in a box with a round connector that no longer fits pc’s. A set of speakers we will never use. Software boxes, for stuff we no longer run. A Windows 98 manual?? And even a floppy disc – well yes, for history purposes, maybe, but we no longer own software or hardware that could run it.
So time to clear out, and in our case, clear up. the attached photographs give you an indication of the amount of clearing needed. 
Amazingly all the kit survived. A bit battered but still usable, including the router that has the front slightly hanging off.
So we got away lightly, and I suspect I will have a few nightmares over the next couple of weeks. The wall where the cupboards were is a mess, and will need professional help to repair. But all told, £200 not £2,000 worth of replacement kit, and no injuries or worse. Lightly indeed.
Now the clear out / throw out commences. We have already shifted one car load to recycling. Loads more to get sorted out. Tonight’s challenge was – I need a battery. Which of 3 rooms, and multiple black bags were the batteries in? Answer second room, and third plastic bag!
Fun to come.