Hi,
So, there’s a place nearby where kids can take private baseball lessons (one-on-one or small group, mainly batting). It seems they were practicing outdoor but moved indoor recently.
I went there with a Japanese friend of mine and his son, as the kid wants to take lessons there.
And, wow, was it an “amazing” experience. Short summary of what I’ve seen while I was there :
* This indoor facility is actually an old warehouse that was probably prefab.
* Holes in the walls and maybe the roof too. The whole place look like it could collapse if the wind’s too strong.
* Main door is difficult to open/close and one-third blocked by a metal curtain that can’t go down fully (the kind you use for garage doors). How can anyone escape in time in case of a fire or earthquake is up to anyone’s guess.
* Part of the cheap wooden ceiling collapsed (you can see a gaping hole and the main roof) and I wouldn’t bet on how long the rest of the ceiling will last
* No emergency exit, because of course.
* Only one obviously very old fire and way too small extinguisher that probably doesn’t work anymore
* For what I’ve seen, no fire alarm or smoke detector
* Seems there’s no first aid kit or AED kit either
* The fuse box is wide open and looks prehistoric
* Power sockets seem on life support
* Dust absolutely freaking everywhere
* Gardening tools (?!) and potentially flammable material in a corner, as it seems the warehouse is also used by someone else
I could still go on but I think it’s enough for you to get the idea.
This freaking place is just one giant accident/tragedy waiting to happen.
Were is it possible to report this sports training “center” and hopefully have health & safety inspectors pay them a visit? Local city hall? Something on the prefecture level?
Thanks!
6 comments
Very cool that the Chunichi Dragons let kids use their training facility imo.
I’m glad you’re up on structural code and policing Japan for all. Report it to your local city hall.
Call the city hall and tell them what you saw. People die in fires all the time because of rundown places like this. You could save lives.
Have you tried calling 0120-KAREN?
Not all heroes wear capes
Sorry for the spelling mistake (“were” instead of “where” >_< ).
Do you know what kind of service I should contact at my 市役所? Besides, what should I do at the City Hall if they don’t want to deal with the hot potato?
eg: can I at least ask them to give me a written confirmation that I visited them and reported the issue?
I’m quite concerned about fire hazards. Though, to be honest, the crappy ceiling could collapse even faster.
I grabbed a few pics in a hurry, here’s what I mean
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https://preview.redd.it/xndlyp70ye1c1.jpeg?width=4160&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6f0c03275baf8b98c9a9a0365a2974e788a7d901