Gaisano mall floor 'safe'

THE City Building Office (CBO) Monday assured that the fourth floor of the Gaisano mall remained structurally stable despite reports of cracks sustained as a result of the crowd that gathered in a promotional activity there last Sunday.

In a radio interview, CBO chief Engineer Mario Batar said he and some CBO personnel went to the area after receiving reports about the incident and explained that while they saw some cracks in the tiles, it was nothing to be worried about.

"Yes, there were cracks in the tiles but these weren't deep enough to cause the floor to collapse. We went down to the third floor and we didn't saw any cracks in the ceiling so as long as there are no cracks, the floor is stable," Batar said.

He said the office conducts annual inspections of all commercial establishments starting from June to December.

Batar said past inspections held in Gaisano mall showed the establishment is structurally sound.

Gaisano mall management had yet to issue their statement on the incident as of this writing Monday.

Last Sunday afternoon, a livelihood program launching featuring a popular actress was held at the fourth floor of the Gaisano mall drawing in a crowd who panicked after someone noted that there were cracks in the fourth floor.

The identity of the person who spotted the cracks was not known and the crowd responded by rushing downstairs and packing the escalators.

Later several persons called up dxIF Bombo Radyo and complained that the organizers of the activity didn't facilitate the safe exit of the crowd, instead proceeding with the event as if nothing happened.

They also voiced concern over the structural stability of the fourth floor owing to the forthcoming annual City Fiesta, which expects a large turnout of city residents and visitors trooping to Cagayan de Oro's malls.

The fourth floor of Gaisano mall had been the site of many fatal jumps and a complaint from one nearby church.

The latest fatal jump resulted in the injury of one woman shopper, whose head and neck got injured after a man fell on top of her. There were reports of minor payments by the mall management on the woman shopper.