Another winter hazard

[Stavro]

If you manage to survive the slippery pavements and loony drivers, watch out for another winter hazard - blocks of ice falling off the roof. Chunks of ice and snow that slide from the roof can easily fall on people!

http://larc.hamgate.net/buffalo_snow_7Ft1.jpg

:D

[Vistravi]

Wow now thats snow!!

[Stavro]

http://ask.metafilter.com/111082/Ice-falling-from-buildings

Anyone think that think height of the building does matter for the deadliness of the ice fall? :eek:
Any physicists out there willing to speculate on this?

[Turquoise]

I know people like to have a certain level of anonymity on here but...I'll be the one walking down the street with a yellow hard hat and golf umbrella tomorrow :eek:

[George Brims]

http://ask.metafilter.com/111082/Ice-falling-from-buildings

Anyone think that think height of the building does matter for the deadliness of the ice fall? :eek:
Any physicists out there willing to speculate on this?
Higher is obviously worse, and a bigger piece of ice is worse too, but the questioner on that site was really concerned as to the best place to walk in Chicago. With the streets there being essentially canyons, the wind is going to blow stuff a long way by the time it falls from the top of the Sears Tower! Best bet would be to stay indoors if you ask me.
I remember walking to work up the bottom part of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh years ago, and the group walking just in front of us were hit by a huge pile of snow falling from about 5 floors up. The whole slope of the roof must have slipped at once. They were knocked to their knees and half buried. Fortunately it was pretty fresh stuff so it was mostly fluffy.

[northener]

Never mind al this guff about falling snow. There's a polar bear going through my wheelie bin as I type this.:eek:

Any advice, anyone?

[canuck]

It isn't just the roof of buildings from which ice falls. If it is piled on top of the car it can swoosh off at the most inconvenient moments. It can come over the front or back windows and totally block the driver's vision. Or fly off and land on another car or a passer by. So be careful of flying ice from moving vehicles.

[Stavro]

It isn't just the roof of buildings from which ice falls. If it is piled on top of the car it can swoosh off at the most inconvenient moments. It can come over the front or back windows and totally block the driver's vision. Or fly off and land on another car or a passer by. So be careful of flying ice from moving vehicles.

Good point, forewarned is forearmed as they say! :roll:

[kriklah]

It isn't just the roof of buildings from which ice falls. If it is piled on top of the car it can swoosh off at the most inconvenient moments. It can come over the front or back windows and totally block the driver's vision. Or fly off and land on another car or a passer by. So be careful of flying ice from moving vehicles.

this was a lesson i learnt couple of weeks ago to my cost(monetary that is, no one was hurt!)

i had cleared most of the snow off my car, but being short i couldnt reach the whole of the roof, plus alot of it was ice. i got all the way from halkirk to thurso with no problems, then came to a gentle stop at the tesco lights. even as gentle a stop as it was, the result was the now loosend ice on the roof came crashing down the front of the car, and i watched as the driverside wiper went ping!!! limped the car into tesco carpark and went back to the lights to retreive the wiperblade. swapped the blade from the passenger side over to diverside, and being a bankholiday, crossed my fingers and was in luck, that autoparts was open. unfortunatley it was broken and had to be replaced.

so £18 later i learned a valuble lesson and wont be taking the snow out with me when driving again!!.

[Gronnuck]

It isn't just the roof of buildings from which ice falls. If it is piled on top of the car it can swoosh off at the most inconvenient moments. It can come over the front or back windows and totally block the driver's vision. Or fly off and land on another car or a passer by. So be careful of flying ice from moving vehicles.

:eek: For the same reason don't drive too close to the vehicle in front; especially if its a truck with a box body, you don't know what might fly off the roof!