Sharjah/Ajman: New building regulations in Sharjah and Ajman aim to make this a safer 2015 for residents of high-rises, which witnessed several deaths of children due to falling from windows and balconies in the past couple of years.
Sharjah residential apartments, new and old, should now have window safety locks and at least 120cm-high balcony railings. Window sills must also be at least a metre high from the floor level.
Officials warn that despite new safety rules, parental neglect can lead to more such tragedies. Some of the children who fell had been left alone at home by parents.
Civic and police officials are stepping up efforts to minimise the risks.
The Sharjah Civil Defence is implementing security and safety measures in all buildings in the emirate.
“Most studies have already found that poor designs of building balconies were responsible for most of the children’s falls,” Brigadier General Abdullah Saeed Al Suwaidi, Director-General of Sharjah Civil Defence, told Gulf News.
The new specifications are mandatory for all buildings in the emirate, and building plans that do not meet the specifications will not be approved, Brig Gen Al Suwaidi said.
His department is also considering awareness campaigns, he said. These will mostly target families, especially parents.
For example, “Parents should be taught not to leave their children at home alone or unattended,” he said. They also must not leave things in balconies that might tempt children to play outside.
“These awareness campaigns will be undertaken simultaneously with fire safety campaigns to ensure that homes are safe from all categories of accidents,” he explained
The Planning and Surveying Department has confirmed that it is currently reviewing all technical specifications for the design of buildings and balconies and there is a committee for that purpose. The recommendations of the committee will apply to new as well as existing buildings.
Sharjah Municipality has confirmed that the new measures will be enforced in coordination with Civil Defence and that they would apply on old buildings as well, which lack safety standards.
A committee will ensure implementation of the new specifications in old and new buildings through periodic visits.
For new buildings taking shape, the Department of Planning will adopt specific engineering regulations for residential apartments and require owners of buildings and engineering departments to provide areas for children to play inside the house so they do not resort to entering porches and balconies for play.
Engineer Zeinab Bakeish, Sharjah Municipality’s head of building permits, said incidents of children falling off balconies and from windows has forced the municipality to modify the safety features in residential units which are included in Article 2/11 of global requirements for windows and balconies.
The municipality has made it obligatory for building owners and contractors to install high window frames and balcony railings with a minimum height of 120cm — up from the current 100cm, she said.
It has also decided that all residential apartments should install resistance locks so windows cannot open more than 10cm.
“Children should not open windows more than 10cm without the help of an adult,” she added.
The new building codes are already being circulated.
All construction, engineering and consulting offices in the emirate, she said, have been given copies of the safety codes.
Fire hazard
On the matter of safety grilles, which some tenants install, they can pose a hazard and obstruction in case of fire.
“A fire broke out last month at an apartment because a family was cooking in the balcony. If [tenants] put up safety nets, the inspectors’ vision will be blocked and they’ll not be able to see what’s going on behind it.”
Al Shamsi said tenants’ requests submitted to the Technical Department will be forwarded to Sharjah Civil Defence to ensure the alterations do not pose a fire hazard.
Brig Gen Abdullah Al Suwaidi said part of the responsibility of child safety lies with parents, “who are unaware of the consequences of leaving a child alone at home”.
Brig Gen Al Suwaidi added: “Even if the child is at home with the housemaid, that is not enough. Families should always watch their children and no amount of protective measures can compensate for a parent’s absence.”
Sharjah Police study
At least three children have died this year from falls from windows or balconies, according to a study by Sharjah Police that holds the view that such tragedies are attributable in large part to parental neglect.
In 2014, seven children died and two children suffered injuries from such falls, while in 2013, four children died in similar circumstances.
Colonel Sultan Al Khayal, Director of media and public relations department at Sharjah Police, said injuries ranged from fractures to paralysis.
Child Protection rights
Ahmad Ebrahim Al Tartoor, director of child protection rights at Sharjah Social Services Centre, told Gulf News that incidents of children falling to their death from high-rises has become a phenomenon in Sharjah and authorities should intervene to find a lasting solution to the problem.
He said parental neglect is the main reason why these accidents occur.
Al Tartoor said that Sharjah Muncipality should force the owners of buildings to provide their buildings with windows that open from above and only adults have access to them.
He also called on the authorities to apply child-friendly building designs in residential structures.
Ajman
In Ajman, Colonel Ali Al Matroushi, director-general of police operations, told Gulf News that there were four incidents of children falling from high-rise buildings in the emirate during 2014.
Al Matroushi said that four main aspects should be highlighted in these kind of incidents:
Parental neglect
People should be educated on the right and wrong approaches in order to avoid such tragic incidents, he said.
He recalls a tragic incident wherein a boy and his sister jumped from the window of their apartment after they spotted an insect on the floor.
This tragic incident happened, first, due to parents’ neglect as they placed furniture under the window and secondly, they give their children wrong information which makes them scared of every insect. As a result the family lost their son and their daughter remained in hospital with serious fractures.