A woman has slammed the council for a lack of support after having to flee her home following the Royal Albion hotel fire.

Angie Lee, 61, evacuated her Old Steine flat with eight-month-old kitten Mia after smoke billowed from the roof of the hotel and choked swathes of Brighton.

Now, after coming home to a soot and smoke-damaged property on Thursday, Angie has criticised the council for a lack of aid when she and her neighbours needed it most.

Angie, who previously spoke about fleeing her home, said: “The council has been useless and has done absolutely nothing for residents.

“We were sent to the Brighton Centre to sleep on camping beds. All we were told was if we were suffering from homelessness we should call the council.

“It has been an absolute nightmare. Most of the people staying in the hotel would have somewhere to go back to but I couldn’t because my home is full of soot and smoke damage.

The Argus: A smoke damaged chair from Angie Lee's homeA smoke damaged chair from Angie Lee's home (Image: Angie Lee)

Angie says that she has now been able to return to her home but has been forced to clean much of the smoke damage to make the flat suitable to live in again.

She added that she had faced an extremely stressful week after taking both of her kittens to the vet on separate occasions: one for smoke inhalation and one for falling from a window.

ROYAL ALBION HOTEL FIRE

A friend of Angie’s, Helen Black, set up a GoFundMe page to help raise money in support.

Angie has previously supported over 1,000 women in Brighton and Hove after setting up the “Brighton and Hove Fabulous Ladies Aged 40+” Facebook page to combat loneliness after the Covid-19 lockdowns.

The council has been contacted for comment.

Brighton and Hove City Council leader Bella Sankey previously said: "'I want to thank residents, visitors and businesses for their patience while we work to demolish the building. The teams involved are working hard to complete this work as quickly as possible and minimise disruption.

“If nearby residents displaced by the fire need advice on accommodation, please get in touch with our housing team by emailing housing.advice@brighton-hove.gov.uk or calling 01273 294 400 (option 1).”