(10.) Dangerous Buildings.—
This is the last, although by no means the least, of the series of “obstructions” I have enumerated. Here, again, very grave responsibility rests with the surveyor to determine what is a dangerous building, and in what manner it shall be rendered safe and secure, for his opinion is apparently legally conclusive on this matter.
The following is the clause of the Towns Improvement Clauses Act which deals with ruinous or dangerous buildings:
“If any building or wall, or anything affixed thereon, within the limits of the special Act, be deemed by the surveyor of the commissioners to be in a ruinous state and dangerous to passengers or to the occupiers of the neighbouring buildings, such surveyor shall immediately cause a proper hoard or fence to be put up for the protection of passengers,[148] and shall cause notice in writing to be given to the owner of such building or wall, if he be known and resident within the said limits, and shall also cause such notice to be put on the door or other conspicuous part of the said premises, or otherwise to be given to the occupier thereof, if any, requiring such owner or occupier forthwith to take down, secure or repair such building, wall or other thing, as the case shall require. And if such owner or occupier do not begin to repair, take down or secure such building, wall or other thing, within the space of three days after any such notice has been so given or put up as aforesaid, and complete such repairs or taking down or securing as speedily as the nature of the case will admit, the said surveyor may make complaint thereof before two justices to order the owner, or in his default the occupier (if any) of such building, wall, or other thing, to take down, rebuild, repair or otherwise secure, to the satisfaction of such surveyor, the same, or such part thereof as appears to them to be in a dangerous state, within a time to be fixed by such justices. And in case the same be not taken down, repaired, rebuilt or otherwise secured within the time so limited, or if no owner or occupier can be found on whom to serve such order, the commissioners shall with all convenient speed cause all or so much of such building, wall, or other thing as shall be in a ruinous condition and dangerous as aforesaid, to be taken down, repaired, rebuilt or otherwise secured in such manner as shall be requisite, and all the expenses of putting up every such fence, and of taking down, repairing, rebuilding or securing such building, wall or other thing shall be paid by the owner thereof” (10 & 11 Vic. c. 34, s. 75).
Great care must be observed in seeing that the notices are properly prepared and served in accordance with sections 266 and 267 of the Public Health Act 1875, and the town clerk, as the legal adviser of the sanitary authority, should be consulted (in this as in all cases requiring notices) by the surveyor.
It sometimes happens that a tall chimney shaft, wall, or other erection may apparently be perfectly safe, whereas in a high gale of wind it may be blown down.
Many tall chimney shafts rock in an alarming manner in a high wind,[149] but he would be a bold surveyor who would order some of these expensive structures to be pulled down in the face of the opposition he would receive.[150]
A curious case of some difficulty in connection with dangerous buildings has come under my notice, where a house was built with the approval of the urban authority, and after completion and occupation the attention of the surveyor was called to the fact that a large piece of rock at the back of the house, from which the site had been excavated for the purpose of its erection, was in a dangerous condition and likely to fall at any moment and cause great damage to property, or even loss of life. The clerk to the urban authority, when consulted, was of opinion that the surveyor could do nothing in the matter, as the case was not met in any way by the Act.
The following is given as a specimen notice to serve with reference to a dangerous structure:
Notice.