HDB can still rectify Pinnacle's railings

-- ST FILE PHOTO

I read with interest the article 'High anxiety at Pinnacle over short railings' last Sunday.

When I visited my long-awaited new home recently at Pinnacle@Duxton, I was dismayed to see such railings for both the middle units on every floor.

The height is definitely a design and security flaw. I believe anyone can do a 'Spiderman' stunt to enter our unit.

I also noted that painting work on my block was being rushed, and there were still workers around, taking naps and lunch breaks on my floor outside the other units.

Before I left my unit, I left a pineapple in the kitchen. I did not lock the courtyard door as it was not locked before I entered my unit. Also, there was nothing else in my unit.

However, when I went back to my new place two days later, I found that the pineapple was gone.

In the article, the Housing Board spokesman said the Pinnacle has 'no design flaw' and that 'safety and security are major considerations in the design of HDB flats'.

Yet the board has also said that residents can install grilles with locks and security appliances 'to make their homes more secure'.

So does this mean I can install full grilles for my unit now, in view of this break-in?

The HDB should have done a floor-to-ceiling railing instead of the current 1.8m-high one.

The middle units are very vulnerable to break-ins. Anyone can hang around the corridor, monitor the unit and climb in.

It is not too late for the HDB to rectify this design flaw.

Desmond Teo

Source: Sunday Times, 17 Jan 2010.