Probe on museum mishap
by Kurulu Kariyakarawana
A special committee has been appointed to study the strength and the
structure of the Colombo National Museum building which is over 130
years, following Thursday’s mishap where 36 people including many
schoolchildren were injured.
National Heritage Minister Dr. Jagath Balasuriya has ordered an
immediate inquiry as to how the accident occurred, to study the strength
of the old building as no major renovations had been carried out
recently. The committee comprising specialists in civil engineering,
architecture and eminent scholars on national heritage will be headed by
the Additional Secretary, Ministry of National Heritage, D.G.
Samarasinghe.
A ministry spokesman told the Sunday Observer that the cause of the
accident was probably due to the large number of visitors on the
stairway putting a heavy weight on the staircase. He said that a large
group of children from three schools had visited the museum in the
latter part of the day and were hurrying to see the place before it
closed. A spokesman for the Cinnamon Gardens police investigating the
accident said that the century-old wooden stairway had been affected by
termites. |