7 guardrails in London building where child tragically fell last month were below code, report finds
One unit had a guardrail gap that's 70 per cent wider than permitted
Seven of the guardrails in a London building where a child tragically fell last month were below code, according to a report obtained by CBC News.
Inspectors at 400 Lyle Street found that the balcony where the one-year-old fell and died on Oct. 2 had a gap between the guardrail and balcony wall measuring 150 mm in width, which is 50 per cent more than the Ontario building code permits.
At the time of her death, one-year-old Inayah's parents said they wanted "truth" and justice" for their daughter. CBC News is withholding their identities because they don't want to be publicly known or retraumatized.
Parents want 'truth' and 'justice' after child tragically falls from balcony in London, Ont.
Another unit in the east London highrise had a gap that was 70 percent wider than what the province allows, according to the report. It was obtained by CBC from the City of London through a freedom of information request, written on Oct. 14 in response to the child's death.
Gaps in guardrails exceeding 100 mm are prohibited in Ontario.
One unit was also found to have a guardrail that didn't reach the 1,070 mm height required, and an additional unit, that they were unable to access, is expected to have the same issue, the report read.
All of the units with a gap in between the balcony guardrail and wall were on the same floor of the 21 storey building.
According to Rad Vuciecvich, the development and construction director at Medallion Corporation who owns the building, all seven guardrails have since been fixed to code.
'Not genuine'
Manish Patel lives in the unit directly next to that of Inayah's family and had his guardrail fixed since it too was not to code.
The entire guardrail on their balcony had been pushed back, filling in the gap. As a result, the space on their balcony is narrower than it was before.
Prior to the accident, Patel didn't notice the gap, which is 25 per cent more than what it should be. He pointed out that only adults live there as a reason why.
He noticed after the incident last month. He said that he was a friend of the family and was affected by the tragedy.
"I don't know how they just approved this design," he said.
"If any accident happened, after you just repair it," he added. "That's not fair. Not genuine. You have to do it before that. They just [lost] their child."