Bad decks

Please miss nothing on your deck inspections .
About 85% of decks we inspected where built wrong .
Write hard miss nothing stay out of trouble .

All the best . Roy Cooke

Six people taken to hospital with injuries after deck collapses in Halifax

HALIFAX — A third-storey deck collapsed in Halifax’s south end early Saturday during a party, leaving five people seriously injured, police said.
Officers were called to a house with three apartments on Brussels Street around 1:45 a.m. after a wooden third-storey deck suddenly collapsed onto a second-storey deck, Sgt. Nancy Rudback said.
Rudback said several people were on the top deck at the time and there were also several people on the bottom deck.
“There was a social event at the residence, a party, and there were people on both decks,” she said.
Investigators said six people — four women and two men in their early 20s — were taken to hospital.
Five were taken from the scene by ambulance with serious injuries and one went to hospital a few hours later, said Rudback.
Rudback said most of the injured people were on the bottom deck at the time of the collapse.
On Saturday afternoon, the third-story deck stood upright on its side in the driveway next to the home. It appeared the deck was only attached to the home at one side.
The fencing on the lower deck was damaged, but otherwise appeared intact.
There were remnants of a party strewn around the yard. A keg sat on its side on the driveway, surrounded by red plastic cups.
A few young men who said they lived in the residence declined to comment, but said they were shaken up.
Rudback said the home’s owner is being interviewed and a city building inspector will investigate.
“We would be dealing with criminal negligence if that’s what the (inspector) found, but we’re so early in looking at it that it would be hard to say which course it will take at this point,” she said.
Last September, about 15 people were injured after a deck collapsed in the neighbourhood of Dartmouth.

halifax_deck_collapse_20140927.jpg

http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1237725-injured-victims-in-2013-dartmouth-deck-collapse-sue-city-homeowner-and-contractor

Please do not have this happen to you .
**· **Video](http://thechronicleherald.ca/videos)
Injured victims in 2013 Dartmouth deck collapse sue city, homeowner and contractor

Nearly a dozen people who were on a deck that collapsed more than three metres to the ground at a Dartmouth home last year are suing the homeowner, the company that built the deck and Halifax Regional Municipality.
It’s alleged that one of the people injured in the incident has lost his sight.
Eleven lawsuits were filed Friday in Nova Scotia Supreme Court, alleging negligence on the part of the property owner at the time, Charles Ashcroft, as well as Austin Contracting Ltd. and the municipality.
Sixteen people attending a party at 194 Green Village Lane were injured in the Sept. 22 incident, which happened at about 1:30 a.m.
At the time, Halifax Regional Police said some of the injured suffered broken bones in the incident, which ultimately raised questions about contractor responsibilities and building inspection practises in the region.
Two people were under the deck at the time of the collapse, and four people in total — two women and two men — were listed in serious condition, police said.
In each lawsuit, filed Friday by Wagners law firm, the types of injuries sustained as a result of the deck fall vary.
“This tragic case demonstrates how (alleged) prolonged neglect has the potential to result one tragic incident capable of harming large numbers of people,” said Mike Dull, who’s representing the 11 plaintiffs, said in an email to this newspaper Friday.
“One allegedly shoddy deck negatively affected the lives of so many, one of whom lost his sight. Another will have long lasting facial injuries and virtually all of (them) are still dealing with significant orthopedic injuries all this time later.”
Shortly after the collapse, municipal officials said the deck in question had been approved by a city inspector when it was constructed a decade before, but they noted that provincial building codes had been updated twice since then.
The lawsuits allege the plaintiffs had no warning of any problems when the deck collapsed, adding they “fell 12 feet to the ground.”
The statements of claim allege that Ashcroft failed to “properly maintain ……inspect …or identify the hazardous condition of the balcony deck and support structure.”
The plaintiffs also allege that the defendant should or ought to have known the deck was “improperly constructed” and failed to ensure the structure would hold the number of guests at the party.
There are also other allegations against the owner in the suit, including failing to obtain a proper permit or ensure proper inspections were carried out.
The suits allege Austin Contracting Ltd., which it claims built the deck, did not ensure it was in compliance with the national building code. The court papers also allege the deck was improperly designed, and the company didn’t install flashing at the point of connection between the house and the balcony.
In addition, the deck’s support beams and columns were not the right size, the suits allege, and “created the risk of the balcony collapsing,” court documents allege.
Other technical aspects of the construction were also not properly carried out, the papers allege.
The municipality allegedly did not conduct an “adequate” inspection system to ensure there were no problems with Ashcroft’s property, the lawsuits said. It also allegedly didn’t enforce building codes and provided an occupancy permit for the property when it shouldn’t have, the suits state.
The plaintiffs are Amy Rose Roberts, Keri Roberts, Byron Nagle, Shannon Meads, Andrew Mcintosh, Jessica Mcinnis-Leek, Vanessa MacDonald, Darrell Douglas, Marlo Craig, Renee Cawthron and Brittany Bond.
Provincial property records show that Ashcroft, who could not be reached Friday, sold the Green Village Lane home in July.
Jennifer Stairs, spokeswoman for the municipality, said Friday that city officials had not yet been notified of the legal action, but would respond “appropriately in due course upon receipt.” She said she had no further comment at this time.
No one from Austin Contracting was available to speak Friday, said a woman who answered the phone at the business.
Police investigated the incident but closed the file with no charges last October, Const. Pierre Bourdages, spokesman for the force, said Friday.
None of the allegations has been proven in court and the defendants have yet to file a defence.

deck failure.jpg

Thank you for these posts!

All the best,
Pat

Wow, great post, thanks for the information Roy!!

Yes this what this portion of the MB is for.

Interesting information … Roy

http://deckfailure.com

WELCOME TO DECKFAILURE.COM

2013 Deck Failures- See our new gallery format
2013 Hall of Shame

Please do not let this happen to you .

Remember write hard talk soft and miss nothing .

http://www.silive.com/southshore/index.ssf/2014/10/tenant_who_fell_from_backyard.html

**Tenant hurt in deck-rail collapse settles lawsuit for **$400,000.00


Lorraine Gallo suffered neck injuries, requiring surgery, in a fall from a deck whose railing collapsed, said her lawyer.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – A woman, thrown from a backyard deck when the railing collapsed at the Rossville residence she was renting, has settled her personal-injury lawsuit with the owner for $400,000, said her lawyer.
Lorraine Gallo, 55, suffered neck, back and knee injuries in the July 21, 2011, incident on Barry Street, her court filings said.
Ms. Gallo was leaning against the railing on the backyard deck around 5 p.m. when the railing gave way, said her lawyer, Edward J. Pavia Jr. of the Eltingville-based law firm Jonathan D’Agostino & Associates.
Ms. Gallo fell off the deck, injuring her neck, back and knee, her court filings said.
Her neck injuries required fusion surgery, said her court papers.
Pavia said the property owner had the railing installed and later repaired at some point before the episode.
Ms. Gallo, who now lives in Midland Beach, sued the property owner, identified in court papers as Z & F Realty Estate LLC, and David Fogel.
The suit, filed in state Supreme Court, St. George, alleged the defendants were liable for allowing an unsafe condition to exist.

You are absolutely right Roy, most decks have a problem - even those that “look” OK. It is important to be able to identify the faults with a visual inspection. Structural components are hard to access without some knowledge of structures (above the obvious, of course).

See eBook Make Sure Your Deck Is Safe

See eBook Design Safety What Seems To Be The Problem?

See Other eBooks that will greatly help inspectors with structures and how to assess them. Also eBooks on Land Navigation (using a topographic map and compass) since GPS may fail while out in rough terrain.

I wonder if Ron is paying NACHI to sell his wares?

Since he is identified as a Vendor, what does it matter if he pays Inachi or not?
His wares seem relative to the further education that Inachi promotes.

Sheesh.

I didn’t see his vendor class.

I have never noticed that before.

Thanks. I guess.

First time I’ve ever seen a member identified as a vendor. Maybe a new way to let vendors pay to advertise.

Thanks

He still spams numerous threads.

Is he anyone worth buying from?

The reason I didn’t see it it that it does not show up because he is on my ignore list.

He must of spammed before and got added to my ** list :wink: