Prefabricated Floor Slab Accident in Zhongxian, Chongqing
On April 11, 2024, a prefabricated floor slab fracture accident occurred in Fengshou Community, Guanba Town, Zhongxian County, Chongqing, resulting in 2 deaths and 3 injuries. The cause of the accident was related to overloading on the second floor.
Basic Information of the Accident
At around 12:00 PM on April 11, 2024, a three-story prefabricated building in Fengshou Community, Guanba Town, Zhongxian County, Chongqing, experienced a floor slab fracture. The ground floor of the building was used as a mahjong parlor, while the second floor served as a goods warehouse. At the time of the accident, the floor slab on the second floor fractured and collapsed due to temporary overloading exceeding the design load-bearing capacity of the prefabricated slabs, resulting in severe casualties.
Analysis of Accident Causes
Direct Cause: Temporary stacking of goods on the second-floor slab resulted in a load far exceeding the load-bearing capacity of the prefabricated slabs. Prefabricated slabs, as common early building components, are typically designed with load-bearing capacities based on conventional usage scenarios (such as residential loads). However, the concentrated stacking of goods in a warehouse can generate local impact forces or eccentric loads, accelerating the brittle failure of the floor slab.
Indirect Cause: The change in the building's usage function may not have undergone a structural safety assessment. The ground floor of the building was a public space (mahjong parlor), while the second floor was converted into a warehouse. This change in usage may have involved adjustments to the load distribution, but the structural safety was not re-evaluated by a professional institution, leading to undetected hazards.
Emergency Response and Aftermath
After the incident, local residents spontaneously participated in the rescue efforts. The county's Emergency Management Bureau, Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau, and other departments quickly arrived at the scene to carry out personnel search and rescue, injured treatment, and on-site containment. The county government established a special working group to coordinate medical treatment, family安抚, and accident investigation. As of now, one injured person has been discharged from the hospital, and two injured persons are receiving treatment with no life-threatening conditions. The specific cause of the accident is still under in-depth investigation.
Safety Tips for Prefabricated Buildings
This accident serves as a warning that prefabricated buildings must strictly adhere to design load requirements and avoid unauthorized changes in usage function or overloading with stacked items. If modifications are needed, a professional institution should be commissioned to conduct a structural safety assessment, and reinforcement or replacement of components should be carried out if necessary. During daily use, regular inspections should be conducted to check for cracks, deformations, or other signs on the floor slabs, and potential safety hazards should be promptly eliminated.
