Escalator tragedy shows cost of negligence

The woman died after falling into a gap at the top of a department store escalator in Jingzhou city, Hubei province. [Photo/IC]

A woman in her early 30s was killed in a department store in Jingzhou, Central China's Hubei province on Saturday, when a metal panel at the top of an escalator collapsed beneath her. The woman managed to push her two-year-old toddler to safety before falling into the machinery. Comments:

The recent escalator tragedies in this country are a slap in the face to those responsible for safety checks and maintenance. In essence, the cause of the deaths has been a lack of a sense of responsibility. Only by closing the loopholes in safety standards and maintenance checks can escalators and elevators convey people safely to their destinations.

Beijing News, July 28

The best supervision is supposed to link responsibilities with management and compel the relevant supervisors to fulfill their duty in reducing safety risks. In addition, an accountability mechanism and punitive damages are needed to punish those who fail to fulfill their duties. Otherwise, tragedies like the one in Jingzhou may happen again.

Jinan Daily, July 28

Instead of the venting extreme emotions and passing unprofessional judgments, people should remain objective in the wake of the tragedy in Jingzhou. Such accidents do not happen often, but bad management regarding safety issues will continue to create risks in the future. The only way to prevent accidents from happening lies in the elimination of unprofessional operations.

Xi'an Evening News, July 28

Thoroughly investigating the accident and holding the responsible parties accountable will not bring the dead woman back to life. As well as punishing all those found responsible, the importance of following safety rules needs to be emphasized.

scol.com.cn, July 28