During the weekend the part of the façade that will be above the main entrance to the new development shed enough masonry to kill a person standing below.
The missing bit that that it where it fell from is in the picture above, you can also see the bit next to it is lose.
You can see from the picture above (a detail from one of the pictures in Saturdays post) that it was there last week.First I phoned the Health and Safety Executive and spoke to the chap I spoke to last week, I wasn’t really sure what action they intend to take, he said he would talk to his supervisor.
He suggested that I phoned the council’s building control department, unfortunately the building control officers were either in meetings or out on site.
Here is the bigger picture of now
and here the bigger picture of last week.It was becoming obvious that I wasn’t getting very far and that my next port of call would have to be the fire brigade.
The problem here though is the blocked drain, featured in the previous post, the question being is the whole structure full of water and likely to collapse
as I said before part of this structure collapsed in the 60s and so the potential hazard may be much more than it first seems.See http://www.michaelsbookshop.com/blogpicts11/id14.htm
If it isn’t dangerous then it will be a bit embarrassing for me but if it is it could be fatal to the firemen or anyone else who messes about with it.
Anyway I stressed the importance of the drain to the fire officers and they went off to look at it.
Finally the council’s building control engineer phoned up, we then had a fairly heated discussion about the whole structure.
I pointed out that I had asked him a year ago to put up signs preventing heavy vehicles from driving on the footpath at the top of the cliff.
That the cliff needs a proper survey.
That a bit of cliff that bits periodically drop of isn’t suitable to have a building with over 1,000 people in it 4 metres away from it.
If it isn’t dangerous then it will be a bit embarrassing for me but if it is it could be fatal to the firemen or anyone else who messes about with it.
Anyway I stressed the importance of the drain to the fire officers and they went off to look at it.
Finally the council’s building control engineer phoned up, we then had a fairly heated discussion about the whole structure.
I pointed out that I had asked him a year ago to put up signs preventing heavy vehicles from driving on the footpath at the top of the cliff.
That the cliff needs a proper survey.
That a bit of cliff that bits periodically drop of isn’t suitable to have a building with over 1,000 people in it 4 metres away from it.
At least he has agreed to put some fencing at the bottom to stop people going where the bits are falling and to get a cherry picker and have a look at the cliff.
It's obvious from the position of the piece that has fallen that the moisture collecting in the 'bush' growing from the top has contributed. Any foliage growing in, on or around a rendered surface will weaken it. As plants grow the roots thicken and push render away from the surface it is applied to. Basic maintenance will stop episodes such as this.....
ReplyDeleteWhat tdc undertake basic maintenance, what a good idea that would be...............
ReplyDeleteIT IS OBVIOUS THAT THE CHALK CLIFF HAS DECIDED IT WANTS TO COLLAPSE AND NOTHING US MERE MEN CAN DO WILL STOP IT.
ReplyDeleteSOONER OR LATER THE CLIFF WILL GET ITS WAY AND THE AREA WILL BECOME LIKE THE CHALK ARE REVEALED AT LOW TIDE. WHY ARE MEN SO ARROGANT THAT THEY THINK THEY CAN CONTROL NATURE?
PERSONALLY I AM ON THE CLIFF'S SIDE AND THINK ANYONE PLANNING TO BUILD ON THAT SITE SO NEAR TO THE CLIFF IS VERY ILL-ADVISED. PERHAPS WE SHOULD DO A SURVEY ASKING RAMSGATE PEOPLE IF THEY WOULD RISK LIVING THERE?
"First I phoned the Health and Safety Executive"
ReplyDelete"he suggested that I phoned the council’s building control department"
That says it all. You would think the Health and Safety Executive would pick up the phone and call the Building Control Department himself. After all, it's his job to be concerned with these matters.
Unbelievable.
buck passing time again no engineer with enough knowledge of the cliffs or sea defences of the area left at tdc
ReplyDeleteBuck passing in Thanet - surely not!!
ReplyDeleteBrown envelopes maybe?
Ramsgate Fan it is the blocked drain that worries me, cast your eye up the picture and to the left and you will see the render there has managed to come off without the help of a plant.
ReplyDeleteData Hoover I think the problem here was that the HSE couldn’t believe that a local authority would put peoples lives at risk, their words not mine, they are now going to send one of their engineers to look at the site.
I think I have covered most of the points raised in the other comments in today’s post.
Thinking of a darker future for Ramsgate, with several ground shaking cargo flights coming in to land at Manston Airport through the night, why would anyone want to live or stay at the Royal Sands Development. If they ever get built who would be mad enough to pay top dollar for them? More blight in Blighty.
ReplyDelete