Yard stairs at Stadhuisbrug, at the site of a stair accident in 2006, closed until further notice for safety reasons

The stairs to the shipyard at the Stadhuisbrug in Utrecht are closed for the time being. The walls are in poor condition and need to be repaired. It is also precisely at this location where a staircase collapsed in 2006. About twenty people were injured and one person died.

The stairs themselves are in order, the municipality says. “However, there are cracks in the yard wall where the stairs are attached to the wall. Water is also leaking through the wall and the wall is saturated with water in some places.”

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Although according to the municipality there is no acute risk of collapse, the stairs will remain closed until further notice. It could take months for the wall to be repaired. The yard remains accessible via the tunnel at the Ganzenmarkt.

A major accident took place at exactly the same location in 2006. Dozens of people stood on the steps dancing and watching a boat parade. The stairs collapsed due to a construction error. An investigation report also contained some criticism of the municipality because there had been too few inspections in the years before the incident.