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Homeworks Phuket investigating cause of shelving collapse
Saran Mitrarat


Central Festival Phuket General Manager Wilaiporn Pitimana’aree: 'The management of Homeworks is conducting a thorough investigation.'

PHUKET: -- The management of Homeworks held a press conference this morning (December 9) to explain their side of the situation after a family of four were injured by falling shelves in the store on Sunday (December 7) and to affirm that the incident is being investigated.

The four were hurt when three-metre-high shelves full of paint cans fell like dominoes at the Homeworks store on the upper floor of Central Festival Phuket East.

The four injured were Paiboon Saekin, 42, his wife Ms Patcharee Boontalay, 35, and their two daughters, Pitchya, 11, and Natnaree, 9.

Central Festival Phuket General Manager Wilaiporn Pitimana’aree said this morning, “We are glad to report that all are in [relatively] good health. All [hospital] expenses have been covered by Homeworks,” she added.

“The doctor X-rayed all of them and confirmed that they received only minor injuries. We have visited them many times and anything we can do for them, we will.

“Please understand that this was an accident,” she added.

Asked why the shelves collapsed, Ms Wilaiporn answered, “We are a big store, not a small shop [and] we have international standards for setting up our shelves. However I cannot comment any further on [the cause of] the incident at this stage.

“Following this most regrettable incident, the management of Homeworks is conducting a thorough investigation to establish the cause, and is taking all steps necessary to ensure customer safety in the future,” she explained. “More information will be provided in future updates.”

The cost of damage has yet to be estimated, Ms Wilaiporn said.

“As to plans to prevent accidents [of this kind] and to strengthen confidence among our customers, head office has reiterated that all branches must pay more careful attention [to safety].”

Ms Patcharee today told The Phuket News about the moment when the shelves started to fall.

“My husband was the first person to realise the situation after we heard a ‘boom’ sound. He pulled our nine-year-old daughter [Natnaree] out of the way. The accident happened very fast. It was like dominoes falling.

“My other daughter [Pitchya] was the last domino; a shelf landed on her chest.

“She was crying and calling for help. She said she couldn’t breathe. We had pulled her out by ourselves by the time the rescue team arrived.”

The rescuers took Pitchya to Vachira Phuket Hospital, she said, and the rest of the family followed.

The family then decided to have Pitchya moved to the Bangkok Hospital.

Asked whether she would go back to shop at Homeworks, she said, “No, I will not. My daughter was very frightened by the situation and I can’t go back to the place where we were injured.”

Homeworks remains closed today while paint is cleaned from the floor, but will reopen tomorrow, Ms Wilaiporn said.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/homeworks-phuket-investigating-cause-of-shelving-collapse-50035.php


-- Phuket News 2014-12-09

[JetsetBkk]

I have no idea how such stable shelving could possibly fall down.

I mean, it's not as if it's overloaded or anything...

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[diehard60]

I can tell you why:

1. When it was built there was no real QA and besides Thailand has no real QA.

2. It was over loaded.

[davidmann]

girl in the picture looks nice hope she up to the job shelves don't

[tebee]

Even tough there is stuff piled up on top it's not necessarily overloaded, the big industrial shelving is designed to carry several tons. However paint does weigh a lot, it might be too much weight concentrated in one area.

There is( or was) probably much more weight on the paint shelves that those in the background piled up with lighter stuff.

[richusa]

The manager should be sent to jail and fined. In China he would be 6 feet under already.

[gyrosman]

As a industiral worker what idiot loads heavy loads on the top not the bottom, stupid people. In the USA this would be a quick 5 million usd settlement.

[tx22cb]

The manager should be sent to jail and fined. In China he would be 6 feet under already.

Vraiment? In China, they execute someone for causing an injury to 4 people, with no deaths and no broken bones? Seems harsh.

[ChoakMyDee]

“Please understand that this was an accident,” she added.

Asked why the shelves collapsed, Ms Wilaiporn answered, “We are a big store, not a small shop [and] we have international standards for setting up our shelves. However I cannot comment any further on [the cause of] the incident at this stage.

They may have international standards but it doesn't mean they are following them.

[steven100]

wasn't it caused by a fan that fell over ..... complete BS

[mike324]

Could be a loose screw that holds one of the supporting braces, other than that I don't see how the shelf will tip / collapse espeically with so much stuff and weight.

[JetsetBkk]

Please understand that this was an accident, she added.

Asked why the shelves collapsed, Ms Wilaiporn answered, We are a big store, not a small shop [and] we have international standards for setting up our shelves. However I cannot comment any further on [the cause of] the incident at this stage.

They may have international standards but it doesn't mean they are following them.

Interesting woman. This was in the Phuketindex.com magazine in 2010:

http://goo.gl/fiK5oB

I wonder why she left the "Royal Phuket Marina" job?

Did they teach her about shelving there?

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[attrayant]

Could be a loose screw that holds one of the supporting braces, other than that I don't see how the shelf will tip / collapse espeically with so much stuff and weight.

Hi capacity shelving doesn't normally use screws as they tend to work themselves loose over time. They usually use cotter pins and similar sorts of fasteners than cannot work themselves loose or be removed while there is a load on the shelves.

But my money's on the shelving not being properly assembled + overloaded + otherwise jerry-rigged.

[Reigntax]

Even the top shelves in the background are deflecting. You can pick this up in the picture on the end support and by the tapering of the gap between the two rows of boxes.

[farangmick]

The Thai bashers out in force. As if the same could never happen in GB or US. The only difference is that in England the injured would get decent compo, and in America, millions of dollars.