SINGAPORE — Singapore will hold a “Window Safety Day,’’ backed by threats of dire punishment, to highlight a growing problem of windows falling from high-rise apartment buildings in the densely populated city-state.
Last year, 71 windows fell off buildings and 44 did so in 2008, the government’s Housing Development Board and the Building and Construction Authority said in a statement yesterday.
The wobbly windows apparently have not caused much damage on the ground. Since 2004, five known injuries have been recorded.
More than 80 percent of Singapore’s 5 million residents live in high-rise apartments, most of them built and sold by the Housing Development Board.
The statement said the government — known for strictly regulating virtually every aspect of public life — will hold “Window Safety Days’’ tomorrow and Dec. 12, when homeowners and tenants will be urged to ensure proper window maintenance.
The safety day will also serve to remind homeowners that they face up to a year in jail and a fine of $7,150 if they are responsible for falling windows as a result of poor maintenance.
“With more than 80 percent of the Singapore population residing in high-rise buildings, it is crucial that everyone does his/her part in ensuring that the built environment we live in is safe from falling objects,’’ the statement said.
