City eyes threat of falling windows from tall buildings
20/1/2006 7:24
Zhang Jun/Shanghai Daily news
Shanghai plans to
step up inspections of high rises to prevent huge panes of window glass from
falling onto pedestrians walking on the sidewalks below, a senior official told
Shanghai Daily yesterday.
"If not properly repaired, many of the city's
exterior glass walls become like time bombs," said Zhao Guotong, an
environmental protection expert.
The effort is part of a larger city campaign
to reduce safety hazards involving poorly anchored exterior building components
such as air conditioners and signs.
At least four panes of window glass fell
from city high rises in the past two years.
Among the cases, a 4-square-meter
piece of glass fell from the Shanghai Jinjiang International Shopping Center on
Huaihai Road M. last September.
Although no one was hurt on the ground, the
accident served as a warning that the problem needed attention.
"We will
eventually replace or repair all potentially risky glass walls and improve
safety," Xiong Jianping, director of the Shanghai Construction and
Communications Commission, said yesterday during the annual session of the
Shanghai People's Congress.
He said the government will issue a new
administrative rule on supervision and management of window-related safety
issues by the year's end.
In the meantime, the city will invite construction
experts and engineers to form a special task force to check the safety of the
city's glass-walled buildings.
If any structures are found to be unsafe, the
government will require the building owners to repair or replace the offending
components immediately.
Similar measures will also be taken to eliminate the
potential risks of outside air conditioner shelves and advertising
boards.
The city has more than 1,300 glass-walled buildings higher than eight
stories, most of which need immediate safety inspection because their quality
guarantee period has expired.
Experts say the huge temperature differences on
both sides of the glass in winter or summer - up to 30 degrees Celsius -
increase the possibility the glass will break and fall.
Officials said new
buildings must adopt the new "aluminum glass" - a special metal that appears
similar to glass but is much lighter and safer as a construction material.
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