front page
Concrete fell from the sky again in the downtown area of Hong Kong, and this time it even penetrated the roof of the bus and fell straight into the upper compartment. When a passenger KMB drove to the opposite side of Xinxing Building on Nathan Road in Mong Kok at 9:00 a.m. yesterday, the roof was suddenly pierced by concrete blocks. Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident. The Buildings Department initially suspected that the fallen concrete was plaster removed during the repair of the exterior wall of the building. The person in charge of the exterior wall maintenance project was subsequently arrested for allowing objects to fall from a height. Some members of the construction industry pointed out that scaffolding for external wall maintenance needs a “closed cage” to prevent objects from falling during maintenance, and daily inspection of scaffolding and fences is required.
Concrete collapse of Xinxing Building
The 57-year-old Xinxing Building once again had concrete falling from its height after last Saturday. A KMB bus on route 30X from Whampoa Garden in Hung Hom to Allway Garden in Tsuen Wan was traveling along Nathan Road towards Cheung Sha Wan at about 9:15 am yesterday morning. When it arrived at Shantung Street Station in Mong Kok, the bus was pierced by a piece of concrete. On the roof, the 52-year-old driver stopped and reported the crime. The fallen concrete was about 25 centimeters by 25 centimeters. Afterwards, many pieces of concrete were left in the corridors and seats of the upper compartment, and the largest piece was bigger than a mobile phone.
Buildings Department does not rule out prosecution or disciplinary action
Xinxing Building is currently undergoing exterior wall maintenance. There is a bamboo scaffold surrounded by green nylon netting on the outside of the building. Some construction workers found that the nylon netting had a hole in the high-rise position. Afterwards, the Buildings Department sent personnel to inspect the site. After the inspection, they found that the overall structure of the building had no obvious danger. It was initially suspected that the concrete was removed by the contractor when repairing the outer wall of the building, rather than falling from the outer wall.
The Buildings Department continued to point out that the contractor has removed the remaining debris on the scaffold as instructed, and will re-check the safety of the scaffold to ensure that the required protective measures such as external protective nets or canvas are properly installed and are not damaged. If the Department’s investigation finds that persons or registered contractors have violated the Buildings Ordinance, they will be prosecuted or disciplinary action will be taken against them. After investigation, the police arrested the 47-year-old man in charge of the decoration project of the building surnamed Liao on suspicion of “allowing objects to fall from a height”.
Concrete collapse of Xinxing Building
Industry: “Secret cages” are required to prevent objects from falling when building a shed
Zhou Lianqiao, chairman of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions Registered Professional Trade Unions in the Construction Industry, accepted an inquiry from this newspaper and pointed out that the straight scaffolds used for external wall maintenance must be “closed cages”, that is, the scaffolds should be wrapped with seine nets to prevent accidents during maintenance. Objects fall down the street, and every 3 to 5 floors will have inclined sheds for extra protection. He went on to say that next to the closely-laid floor for workers to stand and work, commonly known as “kickstand” or “bridge slab”, there will be a skirting board erected to prevent objects from flying and falling.
Zhou Lianqiao explained that the concrete may fly out during digging, and occasionally the concrete will “break through the net”. Therefore, workers must check the scaffolding, scaffolding, Whether the fence is damaged or punctured. KMB replied to the inquiry that no one was injured after the bus was hit. The captain then called the police and assisted passengers to transfer to other buses. The bus involved has been returned to the depot for repair.
There was also a concrete collapse accident in the Xinxing Building last Saturday. Part of the canopy near the first floor was peeled off and fell straight into the bus stop. Fortunately, there were no passengers waiting for the bus at the time. The Buildings Department believed that the overall structure of the building was not obviously dangerous after inspection. Instantly removed canopy side and bottom loose plaster. The building is a target building of the URA’s “Building Renewal Action 2.0”. It was classified as the first batch of cases as early as 2018. However, due to the impact of the epidemic, the renovation work could not be carried out according to the required schedule. The building corporation then held an owners’ meeting in February this year to hire a construction contractor, and awarded a contract in March to start the renovation project.
The Institution of Engineers promotes the importance of building inspections
The Institution of Engineers believes that the government should publicize and promote the importance of building inspections to the public, and the public should also strengthen their awareness in this regard. Chairman Li Zhikang said that the government can publicize building inspections so that citizens regard it as a common thing. At the same time, the authorities can first use drones and other technical assistance to initially analyze whether there is a risk of concrete spalling in the building, and if so, immediately issue a notice Owners follow up.
Former chairman Bu Guoming hoped that the general public, especially the owners’ corporations, would understand that if the concrete peeled off and injured passers-by, they would be held criminally and civilly liable. He also deduced that the hotter weather and more rain in recent days may be the reason for the frequent spalling of concrete in the building.
2023-08-08 22:48:23
#Mong #Kok #Hsin #Hing #falls #concrete #penetrates #bus #falls #straight #upper #floor #Fortunately #injured #person #charge #building #decoration #arrested
