The Hidden Dangers of Concrete Floors Concrete Floors     Company     Safety
More than 1.3 million people died in only the 30 biggest earthquakes of the 20th century. In the first ten years of the 21st century more than 500,000 people have died in only 6 earthquakes.

Clearly such events are as inevitable as they are horrific. And as the cities of the world grow larger and ever taller we must learn from tragedy and recognize that our buildings represent the biggest and deadliest threat to us when disaster strikes.

In times of emergency the very buildings we work, play, and live in can become deadly towers of stone and steel that kill without mercy and leave behind rubble and debris.

Our buildings have become a liability. An unnecessary risk in an unstable world. But we can make them safer by moving beyond the old ways of building and applying modern technology to our built environment.

The disproportionately high weight of concrete is important to builders not only because it adds to the load bearing requirements of the structure as a whole, increasing engineering, steel and masonry costs to support the weight of such heavy floors, but because this weight is also the root cause of most structural failures and is the number one cause of death in building collapses.

From total progressive collapse to minor localized failures, crush injuries from falling or shifting concrete slabs are the leading cause of death in structural failures other than fire and are a major concern among first responders when arriving at a disaster site. The risk from falling or hanging concrete debris often delays recovery efforts and extra care must be taken to ensure responder safety.