Inspections to be carried out at all multi-storey car parks

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The Myvi left a mess after plunging from the fourth floor (circled) of Star City car park last week.

KOTA KINABALU: Checks will be carried out to ensure that all multi-storey car park structures are built according to the specifications set.

In fact, Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor stressed that the recent car plunge incident at Star City shopping complex should serve as a lesson for both contractors and premises owners to abide by the rules and regulations set under the building code.

“For now, I cannot blame anyone as I have yet to get a full report from City Hall on the matter, but we are seriously looking into the case as it involves endangering not only the car owner but those who frequent the shopping complex.

“The whole incident should serve as a wake up call to the Central Board, local authorities and building owners to ensure that building structures are according to the specifications set. We want to make sure that there would be no repeat of such incident in the future,” he said when contacted by The Borneo Post, yesterday.

He was responding to the recent call from the Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM) Sabah Chapter chairman Victor Wong on the local authority to tighten the building code to ensure all parapet walls are adequately and structurally reinforced.

Wong said the code must be enforced whether the walls are at the car park levels or at the balconies since “un-reinforced” parapet walls can be highly dangerous when accidents occur.

On Jan 30, a 53-year-old man had allegedly lost control of his vehicle while reversing and crashed straight onto the “parapet” wall, before plunging four storeys down to the ground around 7am.

He suffered a fractured shoulder bone and bleeding in the lungs.

“Under the existing building by-laws, there was no explicit requirement for all the parapet walls to be reinforced structurally. As a standard practice, stiffeners are always being specified by professionals to ensure that the parapet walls are generally safe to be used. However, these basic stiffeners will not be strong enough to withhold the impact of a crashing car,” said Wong.

He noted that there was a worrying trend where with so many condominium projects under construction in the state capital and other parts of Sabah, more car parks were being stacked vertically to satisfy the car parking requirement within the limited sizes of the building lot.

“Therefore, similar accidents such as the one reported are likely to recur if the safety issue on the parapet wall design is not tackled promptly by both the authorities and professionals,” said Wong.

Meanwhile, Hajiji urged PAM Sabah Chapter to work closely with the local authorities and sit in as councillors to find the best remedy to ensure the incident does not repeat in the future.

“PAM Sabah Chapter members are professionals and we need their expertise to help us find a solution to the matter. I believe with their cooperation, we will be able to offer better security and safety for the buildings in Sabah, especially those with multi-storey car parks. Let’s put our heads together and overcome this matter to ensure that the building code and by-laws are followed,” Hajiji concluded.