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Metal balconies rust to nothing after just 2 years

2014-09-03 09:53 Shanghai Daily Web Editor: Wang Fan
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A balcony with broken rails is seen at the apartment complex in Minhang District.

A balcony with broken rails is seen at the apartment complex in Minhang District.

The residents of an apartment complex in Minhang District are living in fear after a young girl almost fell through the floor of a metal balcony.

"I daren't lean on the railings any more," the girl's sister, who asked not to be named, told Shanghai Daily yesterday.

The state of the metalwork came to light last week, when part of the floor to the balcony of a 10th floor apartment at the development on Chundu Road fell away while the young girl was playing on it.

The youngster was badly shaken, and had to hang on to the top pole to stop herself falling through the hole, her sister said.

"When we looked more closely, we could see that the metal poles were all rusty. It's scary to think about as we used to lean on them all the time," she said.

The family reported the incident to the property management company, which in turn contacted the property's developers and the railings' manufacturer.

The manufacturer initially refused to repair the damage as the two-year warranty period had expired several months ago. However, after several days of mediation by the management company and local media, the firm agreed to install a new balcony.

"Some of the rails got rusty after the paint wore off," said Jiang Guotao, the manager of the property management company.

"We didn't know that some of the products were inferior," he said, without saying why he didn't check the products' safety credentials before having them installed.

The management firm said it will carry out an inspection of all railings, hopefully before there is a more serious incident.

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