Loads of lumber provided material to install additional supports at the University Village Apartments in Columbia, Missouri after a fatal balcony collapse killed a firefighter trying to help residents evacuate the building on Saturday. The balcony walkway collapse attorneys at Denena Points, PC note that as a safety precaution against further collapses and their tragic consequences, Missouri University (MU) hired a structural engineering firm to inspect all facilities owned or leased by MU.
The University had Considered Renovating or Replacing the Aging Complex as Early as 2008
The university apartment building where the balcony walkway collapsed had been built in 1956. The MU Residential Life department had reportedly been contemplating renovating or rebuilding the University Village Apartment complex, along with another older complex, since 2008. The Residential Life Director had spoken to developers about the project. But he said in 2012 that it was difficult to find a financially feasible way to undertake the project. (Joe Guszkowski, Columbia Missourian, 2/23/14)
Re-Prioritize Funds for Safety and Save Money lost in Costly Accidents
Unfortunately lack of financial feasibility has become an all too prevalent reason for not doing things over recent years. While understandable, safety problems with aging buildings and infrastructure will not go away simply because we can’t afford the money to correct them.
The economy, which had already been in slow decline for some time, saw the bottom drop out in 2008. Despite continuing assurances from government officials, usually around election times, the economy doesn’t show any real signs of true improvement.
And necessary renovation and rebuilding projects, along with new construction projects, languish all over the nation. While in older buildings, timbers continue to rot, hardware and support structures continue to rust and corrode, and existing weaknesses continue to grow. So buildings and their balconies, walkways, roofs, and stair rails suddenly collapse under the continuing strain of use.
Our balcony walkway collapse attorneys point out that this winter has seen a host of aging structures across the United States collapse totally or in part because the increased weight of snow, ice, and moisture buildup was more than they could take. The collapses result in building evacuations, road and sidewalk closures, injuries, and sometimes death. The costly consequences of the sudden structural collapses are frequently greater than the costs of building renovation, repair, or tear down would have been.
Generally speaking, adequate preventative maintenance or renovation is less costly than a single collapse accident with serious injuries or fatalities, just as preventative dental work is less costly and painful than the invasive repair and restoration work necessitated by years of dental neglect. Let’s re-prioritize around our limited budgets and make safety a top priority. The balcony walkway collapse attorneys at Denena Points, PC urge landlords and officials to step up and do necessary repairs and maintenance up front to avoid having to pay serious injury or wrongful death liability costs later.
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