The glass window that broke fell from the 555 California Street building, formerly the Bank of America Center.
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I never have felt comfortable walking in the Financial District the few times I've been in the area for that reason - glass falling, not from winds but from an earthquake, which San Francisco has been known to have on occasion.
Mandatory masks off, mandatory hard hats on.
ReplyDeleteI was driving up Van Ness Avenue and looked over just in time to see an old sash window fall, frame and all. It swung down and clipped a guy on top of his head, narrowly missing two other people. I think the wind caused it but the building looked abandoned, so neglect played a part.
ReplyDeleteIt always bothered me that they often only use tape to hold windows in, albeit very strong tape. “ VHB Tape is an adhesive tape that forms a bond so strong that it has the capability to replace screws, rivets, welds, and liquid adhesives in properly designed applications.”
ReplyDeleteButle tape is just part of the equation. You need the proper thickness of wedge between the glass and interior bead. I work for a commercial window manufacturer in Wisconsin.
DeleteHappened in Boston in the 1970's with the new 60-story John Hancock Building. Design was faulty and strong winds had the building shedding huge sheets of window glass ... actually killed some people. The sidewalks around the building were roped off and the building had plywood replacing those windows for a couple of years until they figured out how to fix the design.
ReplyDelete1970's? hell when I was there in the late 80's they had one pop out when I was across the street. You've -never- heard glass break until you have a 20 foot by 30 foot 2-3inch thick piece auger in from 60+ stories up... Echoed Up and down the whole AO... Earth Shattering Shatter to say the least... it was cool AF TBH
DeleteThat glass from the John Hancock building measured 5' x 12'. Double pane. They actually had watchers looking at the building that were supposed to give a heads up if one popped out. Get hit by one of those ad Chicken Little was right, baby, the sky IS falling...
DeleteMy mother got clipped by one of those falling windows...guess God wasn't ready for her at the time. Lucky-lucky-lucky.
DeleteIt's not a falling pane of glass, it's an uncontrolled guillotine.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of the Westin hotel in downtown Atlanta. It shed quite a few windows during a storm a couple of years ago.
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