Jesus Pintado/Daniel Schwen/WikimediaIf you’re scared of heights, then be prepared for all your worst nightmares to become a reality.
Okay, maybe that’s a little bit too far, but this story will definitely put you off visiting any glass-bottom buildings anytime soon.
Stepping out onto a glass floor viewing deck is supposed to give you the heebie-jeebies in a ‘can’t actually hurt you’ kind of way, but one family found out the hard way that’s not always the case.
One woman and her two children were visiting the 103rd glass floor of Chicago’s Willis Tower, which juts out the side of the building, only for the glass to shatter when they stepped on it.
PA ImagesLuckily, it was just the glass of the top protective layer which shattered, meaning the visitors were in reality safe from harm thanks to another layer of glazing below, but let’s take a moment to appreciate just how terrifying that moment must’ve been for the family.
Bosses from the Chicago skyscraper say the family were never in any danger, however eyewitnesses say the family were severely shaken by the incident, and it’s not hard to see why.
Jesus Pintado, who saw the incident, told CBS Chicago:
There was a woman with two kids and they looked really pale and scared because the floor just cracked.
Jesus Pintado and Karly PintadoKarly Pintado added:
I’m scared of heights in general so when I saw that happen, I was like nope, not going on.
Quite terrifyingly, this isn’t the first time the glass ledge has broken, with a similar incident taking place in 2014. Chicago’s Department of Buildings said the Willis Tower’s own engineers are fit to inspect and repair the glass-bottom platform after the most recent mishap.
The Willis Building, formerly known as the Sears Tower, spans an impressive 110 stories, having opened in 1973 and holding the crown of the world’s tallest building for 25 years.
PA ImagesNow, it remains the second tallest building in the US, coming second to the rebuilt One World Trade Center, and is the 16th tallest skyscraper in the world.
I think it’s fair to assume the family won’t be in a rush to revisit the Chicago skyscraper anytime soon.
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Emma Rosemurgey is an NCTJ trained Journalist who started her career by producing The Royal Rosemurgey newspaper in 2004, which kept her family up to date with the goings on of her sleepy north east village. She graduated from the University of Central Lancashire in Preston and started her career in regional newspapers before joining Tyla (formerly Pretty 52) in 2017, and progressing onto UNILAD in 2019.