Number of elevators with lapsed permits going up

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This article was published 24/01/2018 (2855 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More than one in 10 elevators in Manitoba buildings are overdue for an inspection, and the situation has grown worse over the past two months.

As of this week, there were 514 elevators with lapsed permits, up from 335 two months ago when the Free Press last checked.

A lack of timely government inspections has been a concern for years, property owners and managers say.

“This has been a problem for well over a decade. It’s just gotten worse,” said Avrom Charach, a spokesman for the Professional Property Managers Association of Manitoba.

Most property managers have maintenance contracts with elevator companies and do not rely on provincial inspectors with the Office of the Fire Commissioner to point out safety concerns, Charach said.

However, for the minority that don’t have such contracts, regular government inspections are the only safety backstop.

And while elevators are designed with several built-in safety protections, if something does go wrong “it can be a lot more catastrophic than if one of my door knobs fail,” said Charach, a senior manager at Kay Four Properties Inc.

If an elevator mishap were to occur in a building with an expired permit, the province would have to shoulder at least part of the blame, he added.

There are about 4,800 elevators, freight elevators, escalators and wheelchair lifts in the province that require inspection. Depending on the type and age of the equipment, inspection may be required anywhere from twice annually to once every three years.

Among the elevators overdue for inspection is one at The Forks Market, a busy tourist destination, a spokeswoman confirmed on Wednesday. Its permit expired in October.

A government official, who said he is not authorized to be quoted by name, said building owners are required to ensure their equipment is properly maintained and working safely.

“Elevator service companies are contracted to assist them to manage this risk. Just because a certificate expires does not mean the elevator is unsafe,” the official said.

He could not immediately say how large the inspections backlog was a year ago, or cite the last time Manitoba inspectors were caught up.

According to the Building Owners and Managers Association of Manitoba, it’s been a long time.

“It has been an ongoing issue with the province,” said BOMA executive director Tom Thiessen. “Suffice it to say, it’s a problem that doesn’t seem to be getting any better.”

He called on the government to do its job.

“I think it’s important to note that the responsible property managers aren’t relying on the Province of Manitoba inspectors to alert them to safety issues,” Thiessen said.

According to one media report, an elevator at Red River College had a permit that expired nearly two years ago.

“It’s a concern simply because it’s the province’s job to inspect the elevators, and there’s an expectation that those inspections will be done within a reasonable period of time,” Thiessen said.

The province has six elevator inspectors and one manager. In 2011, the unit had four staff, the government spokesman said.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca