# 5 dead after balcony in Berkeley, California collapses. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 16, 2015, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669 "2015-06-16T13:13:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/1 "2015-06-16T13:13:18Z")
> **[Balcony collapses during Irish students' party in Berkeley, killing 6 | CNN](https://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/16/us/california-balcony-collapse/index.html)** > > An apartment balcony near UC Berkeley collapsed Tuesday, killing six people at a birthday party attended by Irish students, officials said. All the dead were young Irish kids over on their J1. The J1 is considered a rite of passage in Ireland. College age kids spend a summer working (and partying) in the US. All the victims were apparently aged between 20 and 25. There are 8 others currently being treated in hospital for injuries. Poor kids. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/2 "2015-06-16T13:31:22Z")
Sad, tragic. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/3 "2015-06-16T13:36:45Z")
How sad. And so hard for the families to be so far away. StG ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/4 "2015-06-16T14:08:25Z")
Just guessing, based on the pictures and the report of 13 people on the balcony, it may have been a simple case of too many people/too much weight on the balcony. Tragic and horrible nonetheless. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/5 "2015-06-16T14:18:44Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Just guessing, based on the pictures and the report of 13 people on the balcony, it may have been a simple case of too many people/too much weight on the balcony. This has happened in New Orleans, too, in the French Quarter. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/6 "2015-06-16T14:29:12Z")
It also happened about twelve years ago in Chicago, where thirteen people died. In that case, the problem was poor construction. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/7 "2015-06-16T16:18:37Z")
Death toll is now 6 and none of them were older than 22. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2015, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/8 "2015-06-16T23:23:51Z")
A local rag’s front cover for tomorrow has the body bags of the victims. A lot of folk justly upset about it. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/9 "2015-06-17T00:17:04Z")
Ah, young and immortal - sure it’s sagging a bit - no problem… This story plays out about every 10 years in the US - and it’s always the under-30’s who are sure the deck/balcony/fire escape can hold one more. Rites of passage should not include burying cohorts. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/10 "2015-06-17T00:22:29Z")
It actually happens more often than that in Chicago due to the abundance of wooden fire escapes/back porches. No less tragic. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Woo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7c8e57/32.png) [@Dr.Woo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Woo)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2015, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/11 "2015-06-17T20:01:26Z")
This is so terribly sad, the poor families so far away. The latest report is they think it was dry rot in the beams supporting the balcony, which is kind of shocking to me - I believe the apartment building is only about 7 years old. They’ve just announced they’re removing another balcony in the building after determining it too isn’t safe. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/12 "2015-06-18T18:38:18Z")
This apparently isn’t the builder’s first time at making bad balconies. They’ve been sued before with claims of dry rot and poorly constructed balconies at other buildings. It remains to be seen if the architect forgot to specify and require flashing and waterproofing, or if the builder forgot to install it, or installed it improperly. Yesterday, the local building inspectors declared the balcony under the one that collapsed an imminent collapse hazard and ordered it removed within 24 hours, and two others were red-tagged. I saw some video on TV of the balcony removal and the wood was crumbling into dust. Thirteen people on the balcony may be crowded, but at least one news agency worked out that it was still within the load requirements in the building code. > [@http://abc7news.com/](#): > > …the I-Team taped an outline about the size of the deck and asked 13 tourists to stand inside. That’s how crowded it was, if all the victims were on the balcony at the same time. But, the deck should have held – it was well within the sixty pounds per square foot building code. (No specific link given as news links tend to change or disappear) ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2015, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/13 "2015-06-18T18:53:16Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Thirteen people on the balcony may be crowded, but at least one news agency worked out that it was still within the load requirements in the building code. (No specific link given as news links tend to change or disappear) I saw that calculation of people and weight on a couple newscasts. “Were there too many people on the balcony?” is an entirely reasonable question to ask, but having a real investigation to find the real answer is the proper response, and if the other balconies were a hazard I’m glad we found out without further tragedy. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/14 "2015-06-19T21:54:31Z")
Here’s a picture of that wood: [![](http://www.trbimg.com/img-55838a58/turbine/la-apphoto-berkeley-balcony-collapse-jpg-20150618/650/650x366) ](http://www.trbimg.com/img-55838a58/turbine/la-apphoto-berkeley-balcony-collapse-jpg-20150618/650/650x366) ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/15 "2015-06-19T22:00:08Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > It also happened about twelve years ago in Chicago, where thirteen people died. In that case, the problem was poor construction. There was a surge in porch inspections in Chicago after that - I know a number of people who got fined for construction that wasn’t up to code. Which may not have been such a bad thing, all in all. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/16 "2015-06-19T22:20:46Z")
There was a lot of umbrage taken at an NYT article about the tragedy. It definitely approached victim blaming and was heavy on the stereotyping. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/17 "2015-06-19T22:32:36Z")
For what it’s worth, the Public Editor (aka ombudsman) at the New York Times [conceded](http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/17/valid-complaints-on-story-about-berkeley-balcony-collapse/) that the article should not have appeared to be blaming the victims. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/18 "2015-06-20T00:02:23Z")
It appears to be this place: [Street View](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Library+Gardens/@37.868267,-122.269544,3a,75y,168h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1saWhg7YqUw585ddzeBG8Hjw!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26output%3Dthumbnail%26thumb%3D2%26panoid%3DaWhg7YqUw585ddzeBG8Hjw%26w%3D223%26h%3D75%26yaw%3D168%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D120%26ll%3D37.868267,-122.269544!7i13312!8i6656!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x97299177160a977e!6m1!1e1). I don’t know this building specifically but I’ve walked past it before I’m sure. 2 star average review. One from last week (doesn’t say if it was before the incident): “obviously horribly constructed. I would not advise going out on the patio… you might end up falling a few stories to your death. another example of irresponsible landlords and housing management taking advantage of the housing shortage for students in Berkeley.” :dubious: Berkeley is full of crappy properties that still get rented by students for too much money because the demand is high. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/19 "2015-06-20T05:50:01Z")
It appears that the plans for the building were good, but it is not clear if the waterproofing was ever put on the balcony, or ever inspected. It is not mentioned in the inspection reports the news people got this morning. The balcony should have held far more people than were on it. ---
**Author:** ![Lochdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/edb3f5/32.png) [@Lochdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lochdale)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669/20 "2015-06-20T19:13:33Z")
Utterly tragic. I remember the Chicago incident very well as I lived near the building. Many times I’ve been out on a balcony at a party. The kids were all over on a J-1 student visa. We get several thousand in Chicago every summer. Vast majority of them good kids. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/5-dead-after-balcony-in-berkeley-california-collapses/722669.md?page=2)