JAN 6 — It was a loud thud, one louder than exploding firecrackers during major festivals followed by screams of “Ya Allah”.

I had a rude awakening that Friday morning. Immediately I peeped through my bedroom window just to find a handful of people gathering near a car underneath the Taman Perindustrian flats in Lembah Jaya, Ampang near my house.

I rushed out quickly and in the commotion I could hear faint cries of a boy’s name. I was unable to see beyond the crowd as a wall and a tree separated where I was standing and the accident site. I asked a lady over the wall about the commotion.

She replied in basic English, “Four-year-old boy, jumping jumping from house balcony at 10th floor. Suddenly fall down.”

I wished I had not heard that. It ruined my day. It was not the start of the weekend I had in mind.

There were no sounds of ambulance or police sirens. I could only presume a family member or a good Samaritan had rushed the boy to the hospital. I was later informed that the boy succumbed to his injuries on Saturday morning. 

The boy’s death reminded me of a series of cases of children falling from higher ground. 

On December 25, a wriggling baby fell from his father’s arms from the third floor and died at the police housing quarters in Bukit Pelindung, Kuantan.

On December 29, a child was reportedly comatose after falling off a Ferris wheel at the Sungai Nibong funfair in Penang. 

On December 30, a one-year-old boy fell to his death from the third floor of a restaurant in Puchong after he was allegedly left unattended by his parents.

Many assumptions could be made from such tragic incidents. Some would blame it on the parents who had left their children unattended. Others would say children these days are too hyper and uncontrollable. A cane or even a hard stare do not scare kids anymore.

While the debate continues, each time we hear, read or see such horrifying accidents, what has been done to ensure the safety of our children whenever they are in a building?

Most balconies in low cost flats have a wall of about three feet tall and are left opened. Owners with additional cash to spare, tend to put up grills while others are forced to leave them as they were.

Those who own units in apartments and posh condominiums put up invisible grills for both ventilation and security. Invisible grills are usually high-tension stainless steel cables covered with an epoxy, a nano-phase material which is kind to the hands and fingers.

Some office blocks and buildings do not have such safety measures because safety and security are often taken for granted. The paranoia of security is all about access cards and security guards wanting to fend off elements from the outside but nothing to address the hazards within.

Perhaps local councils should make it a requirement for buildings to be more child-safe.

The New South Wales (NSW) government in Australia, had in March last year announced new safety measures to prevent children falling out of windows.

According to the Fair Trading minister Anthony Roberts, all windows above the ground floor in existing homes must be fitted with a lock or safety device.

The ministry’s website said from 2011 to 2012, 39 children aged nine and younger were hospitalised due to such falls.

The statement on the website further said the NSW government would amend the Strata and Residential Tenancies legislation to require the owners’ cooperation in installing safety devices on all windows that pose a risk to young children. 

Under the revision of the legislation, owners were allowed to install safety devices regardless of the by-laws of the strata scheme and include window safety devices in the prescribed condition report for rental premises.

Looking at the Australian model and judging by the escalating number of high-rise residential and office blocks in the Klang Valley, perhaps it is time to introduce similar laws to ensure the safety of our young ones.

We could start with the public housing flats where local councils, with the aid of funds from the state government and other agencies could install safety devices on windows and balconies while ensuring new projects are fitted with such mechanisms.

The same requirement could later be introduced to private developments to minimise the risk of children falling to their deaths.

I hope I would not be rudely awaken by another child falling from a high building. We must ensure the safety of the place we live in or we could end up reading another tragic tale in days, if not weeks, to come.

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.