While clearing snow from the roof of the Sanki Sliding Center, where the Olympic bobsled event will be held, 6 men slid to the ground. Falling approximately 30 feet, one man appeared to suffer a leg injury and was taken out on a stretcher; the other men received minor injuries. According to the Sochi organizers, all of the men were taken to the hospital and treated.

Witnesses said the men appeared to have been harnessed to the building, but still fell to the ground with the snow. Associated Press staff members quickly grabbed shovels and began to dig where the men had been buried by the snow that fell from the roof.

An AP Staffer had phone briefly taken away

Security officers ordered Associated Press staff to stop taking pictures of the men with their cell phones.

The bobsled and luge events will be held next month at the Sanki Sliding Center in Rzhanaya Polyana, 37 miles northeast of Sochi. The opening ceremony for the 22nd Winter Olympics will be February 7th.

The reports don’t indicate how the men were actually harnessed to the building, although it doesn’t appear to have been a very effective safety measure. I could find plenty of references to Russia’s anti-gay laws, the reason many are boycotting this year’s winter Olympics, but I could not find any roofer safety laws like the United States and OSHA.

While accepting political responsibility, Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis resigned Wednesday over the supermarket roof collapse that occurred last Thursday.

At least 54 people are dead from the roof collapse in the Maxima Supermarket in Riga Latvia, built in 2011. And another 40 people were injured. Rescue workers continue to search for survivors in the massive wreckage which is one of Europe’s worst roof related disasters in several years.

The second collapse occurred after rescuers arrived and a third collapse on Saturday. No rescuers were injured. They are searching through the fallen roof materials and building debris in very dangerous and unstable areas looking for more people.

Trying to determine reason for collapse

Earlier reports indicate the building materials that were stored on the roof caused it to collapse. Other reports indicate faulty building roof-frame specifications or it could have been the work that was occurring on the roof making a garden and children’s playground.

Will be examining other buildings for roof repair and faulty structures

Daniels Pavluts Latvia’s economics minister said the disaster was “unforgivable” and took part of the responsibility for the collapse since his ministry oversees building projects. He said other important public buildings would receive extensive inspection. Mr. Pavluts said that he will restore some of the oversight policies that were in place before a 2009 decision to disband a national building inspectorate.

Latvia president Andris Berzins said “the roof collapse was like mass murder”. He also urges independent experts to investigate the collapse. Police have also started a criminal investigation into the reasons for the roofs collapse.

Latvia’s interior ministry said the victim’s families would receive 50,000 LVL ($96,600) compensation.

In South Plainfield New Jersey a block long warehouse was on fire at 200 Helen Street. The large industrial building had several roof solar panels. When the firefighters arrived they found a 200 foot by 200 foot section of the roof on fire. Glass tube solar panels were on fire, it is unknown at this time which was on fire first, the roof or the solar panels.

The fire is under investigation and Fire Chief Tom Scalera said “We don’t know if the roof or the solar panels caught fire.”

Firefighters From Neighboring Towns Responded

South Plainfield, New Market, Colonia, Plainfield, Shelton and Metuchen firefighters responded to the fire. The firefighters arrived around 9 am and it took 15 to 20 minutes to knock down the heavy fire. Chief Scalera said the firefighters had to dig into the roof to make sure the fire was out.

Each solar panel had to be shut off individually to insure the fire was totally extinguished. Chief Scalera said it was a time intensive endeavor. Firefighters are learning more about solar panels in response to roof fires.

Two firefighters received minor injuries at the scene and were treated and released at the hospital.

According to lease listing property website the Jordache Building at 200 Helen Street, South Plainfield NJ is a 793,000 square foot building with a new roof and solar panels.

From a study published in the Journal of Safety Research, “Fatal Falls from Roofs among U.S. Construction Workers” is the study from CPWR, Center for Construction Research and Training. The study found that falls from roofs account for 1/3 of fall related construction fatalities from 1992-2009.

20,498 total fatalities occurred in the construction industry during the study years. 6,591 were fall injuries and 2,163 fatalities resulting from the falls.

The study also found that workers employed by small businesses and residential construction workers faced higher risks of falling from a roof and dying. The study also found almost half of all roof fatalities occurred in the southern states, and Hispanic workers accounted for 35% of fatal roof falls.

Report Suggests Roofers Wear Safety Gear

The authors of the study emphasized the need for OSHA’s fall protection to be implemented due to 76% of the fatalities in the roofing industry was caused by falls.

OSHA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been cracking down on employers who do not provide proper safety equipment and training for their employees. Some roof contractors have seen stiff fines in the last couple of years resulting from fall protection violations.

The United States Department of Labor has useful information regarding OSHA regulations and how to comply. If you are working for a company that does not provide fall protection equipment or if you see roofers performing work in unsafe conditions without harnesses and scaffolding you can call OSHA at 1-800-321-6742 to report the issue.

Owners of Aquascape in St. Charles are suing nine parties for $13 million in damages after the green roof partially collapsed two years ago. The section of the sloped roof that collapsed was 500 foot by 60 foot of the 256,000 square foot structure.

No one was injured when the 5 year old roof came down on February 13, 2011. The building is at 901 Aqualand Way in St. Charles Illinois.

$13 Million Payout

Aquascape’s insurance carrier paid out $13 million to cover reconstruction, damages and cost to move employees for a year while the roof repair is being completed.

The building at Aquascape’s headquarters has a gradual sloping roof from the north end to the south ends lowest point and continues on with an open parking area.

Aquascape makes water gardens, ecosystem ponds and backyard pond designs.

The roof is covered with prairie grass and other vegetation intended to absorb rainwater and provide natural insulation. The suit states that “the structure was not appropriately designed and constructed.”

The nine companies being sued are Artisan Design Build LLC, Senektekts, Tricon Construction, Tecza Environmental Group, Applied Ecological Services, Metallic Building Co., Olsson Roofing, Dewberry Architects and Area Erectors.

Area Erectors denies any wrongdoing and states they only followed the blueprints and did the work exactly how it was supposed to be done.

The suit for negligence and breach of contract was filed in Kane County and the court case is set to begin on May 16, 2013.

On Monday, Martin Luther King Day in Santa Fe New Mexico Habitat for Humanity AmeriCorps and YouthWorks volunteers tore the roof of an elderly couple’s home. Agnes and Bob Moses roof had been patched many times. Agnes was sleeping in the living room due to the leaking in their bedroom had saturated her side of the bed.

While Habitat for Humanity normally builds new homes, they felt this was an exception when a friend of the Moses contacted their Santa Fe office. Habitat for Humanity’s volunteer director Rob Lockner said “AmeriCorps requires a MLK day service project; YouthWorks also requires a service day”. They felt re-roofing the 85 year old couples roof would be a good way to celebrate the holiday.

Volunteers and Local Roofers Pitch In

Over a dozen volunteers scraped the tar and old shingles off the roof with shovels and swept up the debris and tossed it all in the dump truck that was parked below the roof. The new roof is expected to be completed in two days. Lopez Roofing and M.A.G. Construction donated labor and materials.

When the volunteer roofers took a lunch break on Monday, they enjoyed a chocolate sheet cake decorated with red roses to celebrate Bob Moses turning 86 a few days before.

The Moses retired to Santa Fe in 1992. They joined AmeriCorps and have been active members, volunteering and advocating for social justice in their community.

Marietta Georgia City Hall is making plans to fix its leaky roof. City Safety service director Jonathan Hupp said “There are actually three roofs on this building front to back.”
The front section of the building is covered by a slate roof and flat roofs are on the back sections. The membrane materials are deteriorating and rain water is leaking through.

The second floor main hallway has puddles of water and trash cans and buckets to catch the rainwater as it drains through. Along with the damage to the walls and roof, ceiling tiles are falling exposing insulation and wiring.

New Roof First Order of Business

Davis Pickering Architects from Parkersburg have begun preliminary designs on renovating the city hall. City Engineer Joe Tucker said a new roof will have to be in place before any upgrades can be done inside the aging building. The membrane and spray foam on the flat roof is approximately 15 years old and will need to be replaced. The roof does not have the proper pitch to allow rainwater to drain off and will need to be replaced.

Tucker said “This will not be a simple re-roofing job, because we also need to seal the roof to prevent water from leaking inside the walls of the building. And core samples of the roof will have to be taken to determine which areas are made of concrete, metal decking or other materials.”

City engineers will be doing as much of the roofing work as possible and will be working with the roofing supplier, Fiber Tite Roofing of Wooster to determine the scope of the project.

Tucker is eager to get the roof repair started, the deterioration caused by the leaking water is holding up other renovation projects to the city hall.

The Victoria rail station was demolished last week after the roof was hoisted off with a crane to be stored and used for a later project. The station was near the east entrance to the Johnson Street Bridge and had not been used since mid-2011.

The bridge is going through a replacement project with a new bridge being built slightly north of the existing bridge.

Although having a historic look, the passenger railway station and ticket office was built in 1985 with its peaked cedar roof. The roof is 15 meters long and 4.2 meters tall with bricks lining the exterior walls.

Roof Moved At Night to Avoid Traffic

Taking several days, a contractor dismantled the brick building and a crane removed the steeply-sloped roof. The roof was then transported by truck to Ogden Point. B.C. Hydro lifted some power lines along the route to ensure safety.

The Greater Victoria Harbour Authority took on the cost of relocating and rebuilding the structure, paying for the salvaged roof and cleaned up the construction debris. Hoping to use it for a new building, the roof will be stored at Ogden Point.

Harbour authority CEO Curtis Grad said “We thought it was a very iconic structure and we wanted to see it saved in Victoria. We’re very pleased to be selected by the City of Victoria to take care of this city asset.”