Collapsing art injures five at the Hyatt as the Canberra Times attacks

Interestingly I have watched the videos and can see no sign of the required bracing for this sort of display. It is not the same company that does the Canberra Show.

Ownership of this problem is 2 part;

1. To the Event manager for not correctly supervising the installation methods to ensure that it would be safe for the application.
2. The company installing these 1m charcoal “Corinthian” panels for not ensuring the same.

Really sorry to hear people got hurt. It is a reasonbable expectation that you will be safe here.

I hope the injured make a full recovery, and would laugh a whole lot more if no one was injured, but, short of any permanent injury to a victim, the biggest tragedy here is that no one caught it on video! I keep laughing at the imaginary video of the event in my head, then telling myself off because people were injured and that’s not funny!

Canberra Times have now updated their story and are reporting 7 injured. (This doesn’t include my son, and perhaps others, who decided that they didn’t need medical treatment for their injuries.) It’s interesting that the call for ambulances was allegedly made at about 11.45am, given that the collapse actually occured at 11.19am (our mobile phone photos & videos were taken within a minute or two of the collapse, at 11.20am & 11.21am).

chris820 said :

The aftermath looks quite postmodernistic.

Maybe it’s performance art?

The aftermath looks quite postmodernistic.

The Canberra Times’ own article on the incident quotes General Manager of the Canberra Times Ken Nichols as saying his thoughts were with those who had been injured but the quote used is:

”What has happened is unfortunate and disappointing, and we regret the inconvenience and disruption to visitors, artists and the charity the event was supporting.”

So that’s his take-home message from this??

firebrand said :

the CT can look forward to a whole lot of lawsuits to be thrown in their direction

I recommend Saul Goodman & Associates http://www.bettercallsaul.com/

Jethro said :

poetix said :

They were framed.

You need to get out more.

I would but I hear that it can give you an art attack…

poetix said :

They were framed.

You need to get out more.

TheDancingDjinn said :

[
Obviously not enough – as a person who has worked with the elderly, and cared for many elderly family – the couches outside the room? seriously? old people find it difficult to stand in one spot for long periods, they get tired, how would they have walked out to your couches? were the couches taken up by wine drinkers who had too much “art” and had to rest themselves? (Personally i would have told them to move had i seen a elderly person needing a seat). Did staff realise there were many elderly going there? was it a day trip from a local nursing home?, or retirement village? if people knew the elderly were going to be there then yes they should have put more chairs.
But as it were, the walls fell down, maybe because whoever was in charge of their installation didn’t do their job properly.

This was an annual festival event open to the general public, not targeted to the elderly. Obviously there were some elderly present and as such would be more traumatised by the accident as reflected in the reporting, but to suggest that it all could have been avoided merely by putting some chairs in the room.. you’re kidding aren’t you?
It’s pretty clear the fault lies with the installer of the display partitions. Be it a marquee or whatever, when you hire this stuff you expect the team that arrive to assemble it know what they’re doing. You certainly don’t expect it to fall down, injure your patrons, destroy your event and make the evening news! I’d be surprised if CT do the art show again, which would be a real shame as I’ve always enjoyed it.

threepaws said :

With photo here http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/four-hurt-in-art-show-mishap-20120311-1us65.html

Hahaha, awesome.

Who in their right mind wouldn’t domino those boards? Just asking for it really. Glad everyone is ok though.

Dacquiri said :

I’ve got photos and video clips on my phone taken just after it happened, but can’t upload them anywhere unless someone’s got a cable for a Nokia 6131.

Bluetooth?

“How long will the scourge of newspapers be allowed to wreak such carnage on our fair city?”
Your kidding right ?

the CT can look forward to a whole lot of lawsuits to be thrown in their direction

simonleeds said :

Battlecat said :

I felt sorry for the poor guy who had obviously been told not to tell what had actually happened and he was really uncomfortable..

I work there and I’m virtually certain the guy would have known, everyone knew. The thing is that staff have been ingrained, from the experience of multiple foreign delegation visits, to be incredibly secretive about everything (even if it’s blindingly obvious and people in the lobby are talking about it) to the point of farce.

TheDancingDjinn said :

Why if it was to have a heap of elderly there, wouldn’t someone put chairs for people to sit rather to lean on temporary walls that are not designed to have weight against them like a regular wall so to speak.

There were chairs around the room and also mulitple couches just outside the room. But I guess if we had put a chair at the exact point where the person leaned against the wall than none of this would have happened, right?

Obviously not enough – as a person who has worked with the elderly, and cared for many elderly family – the couches outside the room? seriously? old people find it difficult to stand in one spot for long periods, they get tired, how would they have walked out to your couches? were the couches taken up by wine drinkers who had too much “art” and had to rest themselves? (Personally i would have told them to move had i seen a elderly person needing a seat). Did staff realise there were many elderly going there? was it a day trip from a local nursing home?, or retirement village? if people knew the elderly were going to be there then yes they should have put more chairs.
But as it were, the walls fell down, maybe because whoever was in charge of their installation didn’t do their job properly.

How can today be the 11th and 14th March?

Brucer said :

The walls would have been hired by CT for the event and setup by the supplier. They look to be the same type (probably even the same ones) I’ve seen used at other temporary art displays, e.g the Royal Canberra Show. I saw how it was built yesterday..stabilised at the ends and linked at the top for stability, which unfortunately also meant that they all fell together. Obviously they needed better bracing. This is sad for the charity that now won’t receive as much funding from the event, if anything at all. Worse still if CT decide such public events are just not worth the risk. I don’t suppose RA would step up? Somehow I doubt it.

Well brucer if we got even a tiny fraction of the Government ad money the CT gets you’d be amazed what we could do for Charity.

PantsMan said :

Andrew Bolt (I know, the lynch mob of left-wingers ready to drive me out of Canberra is forming as I speak), has this take on it:

[b]The one-stop-shop art show for disabilities[/b]
Andrew Bolt – Sunday, March 11, 12 (03:33 pm)

It’s kind of the Canberra Art show to provide this worthy cause not only with money …

The Canberra Times Art Show raises money for Koomarri, which supports people with disabilities…

… but with fresh customers, too:

Four people have been taken to hospital after temporary walls displaying art works collapsed at the Hyatt Hotel, Canberra, earlier today… One person has a suspected fractured arm, while two others will be assessed at hospital for possible neck injuries.

Now he’s removed it! Not in great taste me thinks.

I’ve got photos and video clips on my phone taken just after it happened, but can’t upload them anywhere unless someone’s got a cable for a Nokia 6131.

The walls would have been hired by CT for the event and setup by the supplier. They look to be the same type (probably even the same ones) I’ve seen used at other temporary art displays, e.g the Royal Canberra Show. I saw how it was built yesterday..stabilised at the ends and linked at the top for stability, which unfortunately also meant that they all fell together. Obviously they needed better bracing. This is sad for the charity that now won’t receive as much funding from the event, if anything at all. Worse still if CT decide such public events are just not worth the risk. I don’t suppose RA would step up? Somehow I doubt it.