45 inch pc. of wood falling from the building

[val23]

Hi to everybody,

Just wondering what I should do. Yesterday, as we were walking towards our tower (we live in Bel-air on the Peak), a 45 inch pc of wood fell on my 3 year old son's head. It hit him in 2 places which caused hematoma. Fortunately after getting an x ray there seems to be nothing that's fractured. We had the police come. They determined that the piece of wood fell from one of the low floor apartments naming 10th floor and lower. In Bel-Air we start with 7 th floor which is the apartment above the podium level which means that the the possibility of finding the culprit is easier 1 out of 4. However, they said that they knocked on those apartment doors and they did not find anything suspicious. I was thinking of course, if you ask " Did you throw anything down?", who would say yes? The person would deny it. So currently, status is still "under investigation" but I wonder if they would really do something about it. I am thinking that I should puruse this matter further as my parental obligation. I mean my son is 3 and he can't defend himself, so who will? My husband on the other hand, is more like the "never mind" attitude. Second reason is that we live here and by knowing that the person responsible was never caught makes me feel more unsafe.

Any advice on what should I do? Thanks in advance.

[mintycat]

I am sorry to hear that your son got hurt by falling debris. I am glad to hear he is safe, but I would definitely pursue it. A few years ago, a lot of pedestrians were hit by old window frames falling out of apartments and it was considered an offence. Of course it's hard to find out who did it because as you said, no one will likely come forward. I am not sure how to go about it but at least keep pestering the police about the status of the investigation. Recently, in my building, there was a notice in the lift where management is telling residents not to throw stuff out of the balconies as they have discovered empty nut shells in the parking lot. I would also pressure the management of Bel-Air to do whatever necessary to protect the residents there.

[val23]

Hi,

The funny thing is it's so difficult to contact the CID in charge of the case. There is always nobody answering their phones! Management though has been helpful. We will continue to follow up but I must say that I'm afraid that there will be no fruitful outcome out of this.

Thanks.

Val

[mumsy]

This was such a terrible thing to happen to your son and I'm glad he's okay. Nevertheless I would be very upset and angry - what if it were to happen again and someone else was seriously injured. Unfortunately with no witnesses, I doubt the police can do anything.
You should check with your management whether this type of incident has happened before, or if any flat was being renovated. We don't know whether it was an accident while someone was repairing something near the window, or whether a child threw it, or whether a malicious adult threw it. Management will usually put up a notice, but if cameras are not in place I'm afraid it's not much of a deterent.
If you still feel as though you need to do something, you could write a letter to the tenants explaining what happened to your little boy. It's more of a personal touch and I'm sure other parents will keep an eye out in future. Mentioning that the police deduced the wood had fallen from the 7th-10th floor might deter the culprit from doing it again.