by Jim Bessey

Created on: February 10, 2008

Can anything truly be made "safe"? Does the height of a building directly relate to its level of safety? Ask those questions to any of the survivors of the September 11th destruction of the Twin Towers, and the answers are obvious. However, "safe" is a tricky word to define.

We worry a great deal about safety these days, in part because of the constant threat of lawsuits. In the early eighties a new tower here in Rochester, NY raised grave concerns when giant slabs of white granite began to cascade from the exterior, raining on the sidewalk many stories below. Talk about hazardous! On the other hand, we have to consider indoor air quality in enormous sealed skyscrapers. The release of toxic fumes from new construction materials can create silent but deadly conditions.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911 (146 dead) made fire prevention and safe rescue options front page news. Wealthy residents of the multi-story condo's on Florida's barrier islands fear hurricane winds and flooding far more than fire. On the other US coast, even more rich residents worry about fire from the outside, racing down the tinder-dry hillsides to engulf their palaces. In Japan, engineers design comprehensive systems to thwart the effects of the devastating earthquakes they all know will strike someday without warning.

When is safe, safe enough? Automakers struggle with the question every year as they try to satisfy customers' conflicting demands for safety and savings. Should a car be able to absorb a 20-mph collision with minimal damage? How many airbags are enough - two, six, eight? Will those hulking SUV's roll over in tight turns? Where should we put the gas tank so it won't explode on impact? Engineering teams designing towers to new heights must wrestle with these same concepts.

We build tall buildings because we can, and because real estate in large cities is priceless. For city dwellers employed by world-class corporations, high-rise offices are a given. They go home and ride elevators up to their fortieth-floor apartments, too. Few of the millions who rely on skyscrapers can afford to live with the unending stress of asking, "are these buildings safe?" We all get in our cars and drive around each day, knowing in the back of our minds that this is the single most dangerous activity most of us will ever enjoy. That's life.

Still, we must live with the horrific images of the World Trade Center towers collapsing upon themselves while rescue workers raced desperately up the stairwells.

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