At around 4:30 p.m. on May 5, a strong wind blew in Utaka Town, Niihama City, Ehime Prefecture, Japan, and the branches of the trees kept shaking.
A sixth-grade boy got out of his father's car and happily trotted to a friend's house.
(Japanese elementary school students walk across the road)
Just as the boy was at the intersection and wanted to turn left, an accident happened.
The reflector set at the turn suddenly snapped off from the root, knocking the little boy to the ground.
(Elementary school student is smashed)
The father saw in the car that the mirror was about to fall and shouted: "Danger, danger!" ”
But it was too late, and as soon as the words fell, the son fell to the ground.
(Elementary school student is smashed)
The boy endured the pain, stood up on his own, and walked to the side with his head in his hands.
Subsequently, the father hurriedly called for emergency services and called an ambulance to take his son to the hospital for treatment.
Fortunately, after the examination on the day of the incident and on May 8, the doctor confirmed that there was no abnormality in the boy's head, and he still needs to be observed in the future.
(Elementary school student is smashed)
The fallen mirror is about 3 meters high, and the pillar is a steel pipe with a diameter of 7.6 centimeters, and there are rust marks on the fracture, so I don't know what year it was installed.
(Broken mirror)
In fact, as early as December 2022, the road department of Xinjubin City conducted a major inspection of about 3,300 reflectors in the city, and found that 331 pillars were decayed.
However, only 14 of the pillars were replaced, and the remaining 317 pillars were simply disposed of.
For example, the reflector that fell this time has been found to be rusty and corroded at the root of the pillar in the last inspection.
However, due to the limited budget, the staff thought that it was not a big problem and that it was not yet to be replaced, so it was only fixed with tape at that time.
(The local steel pipe was found to have problems the year before last)
On May 5 of this year, Shinihama City issued a strong wind warning.
The maximum instantaneous wind speed observed 3 km away from the incident site was 15.2 m/s.
The pillar of the reflector, which was fixed with duct tape, could not withstand the wind and broke directly from the root, smashing the boy passing by.
After the accident, local staff again conducted an emergency inspection of the 316 pillars that had been confirmed to be old the year before.
As a result, 53 pillars were confirmed to be severely corroded and needed to be replaced.
The local government said that the 53 pillars will be replaced in batches this year.
(Screenshot of Japanese media report)
Hideaki Kamei, head of the road department, said:
"I am deeply sorry for the injured boy, and I will continue to do my best to maintain and manage it."
The father of the victim boy said:
"My son was frightened. Hopefully, there will be no more accidents like this in the future. ”
(Boy's father is interviewed)
President Jongzo Kato, who knows about the mirror installation business, was interviewed by reporters.
(Attaching a reflector)
Regarding the service life of roadside reflectors, Kato Zhongzo revealed:
"The manufacturer's claimed service life is about 10~15 years.
However, in places with harsh environments, it may only be used for 2~3 years.
(Expert interviewed)
For example, dogs may pee on steel pipes when they pass by every day, causing the corrosion of steel pipes to accelerate. ”
(Expert interviewed)
In February 2021, a traffic lamppost suddenly fell on the street in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, Japan.
(Traffic lamppost falls)
This traffic light iron rod, about 6.5 meters long and weighing about 88 kilograms, was also corroded and fractured from the roots.
Fortunately, the collapse of the iron pole occurred in the middle of the night and did not cause injuries to pedestrians.
(Traffic lamppost falls)
The traffic lamppost had a lifespan of 50 years, but after only about 23 years, the iron collapsed, less than half of its design life.
After an investigation, the police believed that the culprit was actually the dog peeing at will.
(Police announce findings)
Investigators observed the vicinity of the incident for a while and found that this was a necessary route for many dogs to walk.
And after the installation of new traffic lampposts, dogs often pee in the same place.
(Dog peeing)
The problem is that the dog's urine contains substances such as salts, which causes accelerated corrosion of the roots of the irons.
"Even if the dog doesn't pee much at a time, it will have a great impact on public facilities over the years."
As for the operation of Shinihama City just reinforcing the corroded steel pipe with tape, Kanzo Kato said that he was incomprehensible:
Fixing with tape can only be considered an emergency operation, and it is only a matter of time before the mirror falls down......
Japanese netizens are also speechless:
"We all know that the root of the steel pipe is corroded, and it is only fixed with tape, which is a man-made disaster."
(Screenshot from YouTube netizen @yojikiki9460)
"Tape-fastened? The head of the staff in charge of the inspection has also corroded......"
（截图来自油管网友@user-sm2xt8kk5x）
"It can't be fixed with tape! Compensation should be demanded from the locals! ”
（截图来自油管网友@user-sg4em8up6y）
"It could have killed a person, but luckily the boy was fine."
（截图来自油管网友@user-wu3fq8or3o）
This time the accident will not be carried by the dog again......
(The boy is smashed)