Province issues compliance orders after glass door plummets from 9th storey of Halifax development

Nova Scotia's Department of Labour says it has issued compliance orders to a local contractor, after a video circulating on social media showed a glass door falling from the ninth storey of a building under construction in downtown Halifax during a storm on Monday evening.

Rahim Kandjy recorded the video from his apartment near Cogswell Street and Brunswick Street. He later shared it on Twitter, where it has been viewed more than 160,000 times.

"As I looked, I saw one of the windows just unmount from the building, fly down and shatter on the ground," he said. "And since the wind was picking up, I was expecting something worse to happen. So I got my cellphone out, started filming, and another window just straight fell down." 

It's fortunate that no one was walking on the sidewalk below at the time, he said.

In a response to Kandjy's tweet, Halifax police said the Department of Labour was investigating the incident. 

Kandjy welcomes that decision.

"I think that is a good move," he said. "Better to be proactive and to prepare for those type of conditions." 

In a statement, the Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration told CBC News it received a report of a  safety concern at the site. Occupational Health and Safety officers have visited it and issued compliance orders to the contractor. 

"Early reports indicated that wind caused debris to land within a secure area of the worksite and on the sidewalk," the  statement says.

The construction site is located just behind the Staples on Gottingen Street, on the corner of Cogswell and Brunswick. 

The company behind the project, which will feature a 21-storey residential tower and a nine-storey hotel tower, is called Jono Developments.

CBC News contacted Joe Metlege, the company's president, on Tuesday afternoon but has not received a response.

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