Member of public fell through corroded railings on seaside promenade

A member of the public who leaned on iron balustrade on a seaside promenade fell four metres onto the beach when the railings gave way. Another member of the public below narrowly avoided being struck by the person and the falling railing.

The incident has seen a warning issued to inspectors and owners to ensure load testing is carried out on older balustrades.

According to CROSS UK, the railing was found to be severely corroded and looked as if it had not been inspected or painted for some time. It is thought that the railings may be a heritage asset, which has prevented or complicated repair or replacement. Similar levels of corrosion and cracking were seen on the railings along the promenade, and this represents a potentially fatal hazard for both members of the public walking along the popular tourist site in a seaside town and those lying on the beach below.

"Asset owners should have a maintenance plan in place for high risk assets, such as iron safety railings in a coastal environment, and there must be better measures in place to ensure this plan is followed through, particularly if they are also heritage assets," the report stated.

"Balustrades are a safety critical asset. Cast iron balustrading in a marine environment can present significant problems due to accelerated corrosion and its brittle nature. It often cracks at the base and the defect may remain undetected for a considerable time."

What should have happened?

The reporter described the railings as 'heritage assets' but it is not stated whether they are listed (or afforded some other form of heritage protection). In any event, this should not be allowed to delay their repair and thus compromise their stability.  Their safety critical function, the brittle nature of their material and of the failure, and the presence of corrosion on the failure surfaces (indicating the cracks had been present for considerable time) further highlights the need for a comprehensive inspection and repair regime.

Given the nature of the defects and the difficulty in identifying them, an inspection regime may require an element of testing to give confidence that the balustrade remains adequate. If a comprehensive inspection regime is not in place, then it might be sensible to consider controlling the risk by providing temporary barriers.

If public events are held on the beach, for example concerts, fireworks celebrations or aerial displays, there are likely to be people wishing to view them from the promenade, increasing the risk to the public. If a comprehensive inspection regime is not in place, then it might be sensible to consider controlling the risk by providing temporary barriers some distance from the balustrade with stewards to prevent the audience from approaching it and potentially overloading it laterally.

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