Upright Safety

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   The article speaks for itself about the potential dangers of uprights and placing them to close to where crowds maybe watching. 
I do not believe anyone would keep uprights standing if they were expecting gusts of 50 mph. Never-the-less, I post this in case others have missed this tragic story. 
FERNDALE, Mich. � High winds toppled a flagpole onto a kindergartner during recess at an elementary school Monday, killing the girl, a school spokeswoman said.
The accident happened in an interior courtyard at Roosevelt Primary School in Detroit's northern suburbs.
About 15 other children were in the courtyard at the time, but none was injured, said district spokeswoman Stephanie Hall. They were taken inside the building while the principal and two teachers remained with the 5-year-old girl, who was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
"We stayed with her to make sure she felt supported and secure," said Principal Dina Krause.
The girl's name wasn't released.
"She was a precious little girl," Krause said. "She was a good student with an incredible smile."
Winds in the area were blowing out of the northeast at about 25 mph, with gusts near 40, the National Weather Service said.
Annette Serano, who was picking up her third-grade son, Ben, after school, said she was upset to learn that officials allowed children to be outside.
"I don't understand � I weigh 140 pounds and I was blown around," she said.
Krause said the school's kindergartners commonly play in the courtyard, even on windy days, because it offers shelter from the elements. The school has about 370 kindergarten through third grade students.
The school was built in 1920, and has had multiple renovations, the district said. School officials weren't sure about the age of the flagpole or who made it, but said it hadn't been replaced recently.
An American flag was flying on the pole at the time it toppled. 

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McSanta Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Postaholic Joined: 4/12/05 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1595	Post Options Post Reply Quote McSanta Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Upright Safety Posted: 4/22/07 at 6:58am
	The article speaks for itself about the potential dangers of uprights and placing them to close to where crowds maybe watching. I do not believe anyone would keep uprights standing if they were expecting gusts of 50 mph. Never-the-less, I post this in case others have missed this tragic story. FERNDALE, Mich. � High winds toppled a flagpole onto a kindergartner during recess at an elementary school Monday, killing the girl, a school spokeswoman said. The accident happened in an interior courtyard at Roosevelt Primary School in Detroit's northern suburbs. About 15 other children were in the courtyard at the time, but none was injured, said district spokeswoman Stephanie Hall. They were taken inside the building while the principal and two teachers remained with the 5-year-old girl, who was later pronounced dead at a hospital. "We stayed with her to make sure she felt supported and secure," said Principal Dina Krause. The girl's name wasn't released. "She was a precious little girl," Krause said. "She was a good student with an incredible smile." Winds in the area were blowing out of the northeast at about 25 mph, with gusts near 40, the National Weather Service said. Annette Serano, who was picking up her third-grade son, Ben, after school, said she was upset to learn that officials allowed children to be outside. "I don't understand � I weigh 140 pounds and I was blown around," she said. Krause said the school's kindergartners commonly play in the courtyard, even on windy days, because it offers shelter from the elements. The school has about 370 kindergarten through third grade students. The school was built in 1920, and has had multiple renovations, the district said. School officials weren't sure about the age of the flagpole or who made it, but said it hadn't been replaced recently. An American flag was flying on the pole at the time it toppled.
	Mark McVey "The work of science is to substitute facts for appearances and demonstrations for impressions." -John Ruskin

Wayne Hill Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Postaholic Joined: 8/29/04 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 2935	Post Options Post Reply Quote Wayne Hill Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 4/22/07 at 10:26am
	On the AD part of the discussion, I couldn't agree more. It's tempting to set up the WOB close to the crowd so they'll get involved, but there's no need for anyone to be closer than well clear of "falling distance". At the Celebration of Celts last year, the wind came up tremendously all of a sudden during caber toss (now that was fun!) and blew my canopy over into the crowd. Fortunately, nobody was hurt, but someone easily could have been. The weird part is that it HAD been staked down, so you really gotta watch it. The kindergarten tragedy, which is terribly sad, sounds like a lawsuit in the making. A flagpole shouldn't come down in less than 100 mph wind, and even then they'd have some splainin' to do. If it was in poor condition, it should have been taken down. -Wayne
	"We may be small, but we're slow." - MIT Rugby

greynolds177 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Postaholic Joined: 4/12/07 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1752	Post Options Post Reply Quote greynolds177 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 4/24/07 at 7:05am
	Thanks for posting that McSanta. What a tragic accident. Well said Wayne - double the length of the supports holding the bar and you will be fine. Over here in Inverness when we mark out the field for all our throwing events we take the World Record plus 50% and stick soccer corner flags at the end of the area where we are expecting it to land.