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Murphy’s Law, written by Barbara Murphy, appears monthly in The Golden Times. The column represents the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the opinion of the publisher.
Strong Regulatory Enforcement Necessary
With Failing Infrastructure
The folks who clamor for smaller government and fewer regulations should be required to make a pilgrimage to 22nd and Market Streets in Philadelphia and there behold the tragic evidence of what happens when there is insufficient government and a lack of needed regulations.
On June 5, at that site, a building under demolition collapsed onto the neighboring Salvation Army thrift store. Six people were killed and 14 injured, several of them seriously.
Emotionally, the tragedy came close to home. Like many senior citizens, I’m a dedicated patron of thrift stores and I have shopped many times at Salvation Army stores, although not at the one destroyed in the June 5 catastrophe. However, two of my friends have loved ones killed or injured in the collapse. Three days after the tragedy, I went to my local Salvation Army thrift store to buy some summer clothing. Once inside, I offered my condolences to the staff. One of them told me he had lost a very dear friend in the collapse.
Every day since the tragedy has produced another news story about what went wrong.
The demolition contractor was allegedly unqualified, had a criminal history and inadequate insurance, employed unqualified workers and used heavy equipment to tear down the building instead of doing it by hand — which the fragile condition of the building required. Questions also have been raised about problems in the background of the building’s owner.
The excavator machine operator who allegedly tested positive for drugs, has been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams has announced a grand jury investigation and Philadelphia City Council President Darrell L. Clarke has called for hearings and “a sweeping probe.” Both men promised to examine more than just individual failures at the demolition site, declaring they would explore systemic weaknesses in the city’s regulation and inspection of demolition sites.
I fervently hope the District Attorney and the city council president will keep their promise about exploring systemic weaknesses. I also hope they would broaden their inquiry to include construction sites and decaying buildings as well as aging bridges and crumbling highways.
Philadelphia’s government — or lack thereof — has been rightly castigated as the real villain in the matter, not merely the excavator machine operator. But Philadelphia is not alone in having inadequate laws and regulations to protect its citizens from structural disasters.
This country is cursed with a decaying infrastructure. The problem extends from coast to coast. Bridges collapse, highways buckle, trains collide, buildings tumble and power lines topple — all with distressing regularity. And the prediction is for more of the same unless governments at all levels rise to the challenge.
The hyenas who howl for smaller government and fewer regulations need to be run out of town and replaced at the political table by people who understand the crying need for strong government oversight and strong regulations to prevent tragedies like the one at 22nd and Market streets.
The six people who died in the Salvation Army store were innocent victims of government dysfunction. They will have died in vain unless we honor their memories by demanding that our aging infrastructure be revitalized and needed regulations be put in place to protect the lives of people in or near demolition and construction sites.
*
Barbara Murphy, 80, writes about controversial issues each month.
With Failing Infrastructure
The folks who clamor for smaller government and fewer regulations should be required to make a pilgrimage to 22nd and Market Streets in Philadelphia and there behold the tragic evidence of what happens when there is insufficient government and a lack of needed regulations.
On June 5, at that site, a building under demolition collapsed onto the neighboring Salvation Army thrift store. Six people were killed and 14 injured, several of them seriously.
Emotionally, the tragedy came close to home. Like many senior citizens, I’m a dedicated patron of thrift stores and I have shopped many times at Salvation Army stores, although not at the one destroyed in the June 5 catastrophe. However, two of my friends have loved ones killed or injured in the collapse. Three days after the tragedy, I went to my local Salvation Army thrift store to buy some summer clothing. Once inside, I offered my condolences to the staff. One of them told me he had lost a very dear friend in the collapse.
Every day since the tragedy has produced another news story about what went wrong.
The demolition contractor was allegedly unqualified, had a criminal history and inadequate insurance, employed unqualified workers and used heavy equipment to tear down the building instead of doing it by hand — which the fragile condition of the building required. Questions also have been raised about problems in the background of the building’s owner.
The excavator machine operator who allegedly tested positive for drugs, has been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams has announced a grand jury investigation and Philadelphia City Council President Darrell L. Clarke has called for hearings and “a sweeping probe.” Both men promised to examine more than just individual failures at the demolition site, declaring they would explore systemic weaknesses in the city’s regulation and inspection of demolition sites.
I fervently hope the District Attorney and the city council president will keep their promise about exploring systemic weaknesses. I also hope they would broaden their inquiry to include construction sites and decaying buildings as well as aging bridges and crumbling highways.
Philadelphia’s government — or lack thereof — has been rightly castigated as the real villain in the matter, not merely the excavator machine operator. But Philadelphia is not alone in having inadequate laws and regulations to protect its citizens from structural disasters.
This country is cursed with a decaying infrastructure. The problem extends from coast to coast. Bridges collapse, highways buckle, trains collide, buildings tumble and power lines topple — all with distressing regularity. And the prediction is for more of the same unless governments at all levels rise to the challenge.
The hyenas who howl for smaller government and fewer regulations need to be run out of town and replaced at the political table by people who understand the crying need for strong government oversight and strong regulations to prevent tragedies like the one at 22nd and Market streets.
The six people who died in the Salvation Army store were innocent victims of government dysfunction. They will have died in vain unless we honor their memories by demanding that our aging infrastructure be revitalized and needed regulations be put in place to protect the lives of people in or near demolition and construction sites.
*
Barbara Murphy, 80, writes about controversial issues each month.