A WOMAN in Shanghai who spent 60,000 yuan (RM35,978) installing a motorised stairlift for her mother was forced to dismantle the device after neighbours in her apartment building reported it to authorities, reported China Press.
The incident took place at an ageing residential block in Pudong district where the woman, Chao, wanted to help her 78-year-old mother, who was suffering mobility issues, gain access to their apartment on the sixth floor.
After speaking with a dozen of her neighbours and assuming she had support, Chao ordered a customised stairlift.
Just when the metal railing for the stairlift was being installed along the staircase handrail, residents began voicing their disapproval.
They complained that the stairlift chair would obstruct access to an apartment on the second floor.
Measurements by the neighbourhood committee showed that there would only be 52cm clearance between the door of the apartment unit and the stairlift chair.
Local fire safety authorities agreed that the narrow clearance failed to meet fire safety requirements for emergency escape.
As such, they issued a notice to Chao ordering the stairlift to be removed.
Chao blamed the property management company and the neighbourhood committee, saying that they should have warned her that the structure was illegal.
In response, the committee said it understood Chao’s concern and urged local authorities to introduce clearer policies governing the installation of accessibility equipment, such as stairlifts.
The above article is compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with this ' >'sign, it denotes a separate news item.
