The security for the damaged school in Jablonec will cost up to 25 million CZK

Jablonec nad Nisou - Securing the Secondary School of Crafts and Services in Jablonec nad Nisou, which partially collapsed during reconstruction last November, is estimated to cost between 18 to 25 million Czech crowns. Work is expected to begin next week and may last up to three months. The supplier of the steel structure, which will reinforce the historically protected building, is Metrostav. The company has experience with similar cases. The road around the school is likely to be reopened to traffic only in mid-May, Deputy Governor Petr Tulpa (Mayors for the Liberec Region) told reporters today.

The building was damaged during the construction of a vocational education center. The school is empty due to the construction. The reconstruction revealed serious statics disruption in the building's structures, which caused a part of the wall to collapse on the first and second floors. The situation was worsened by heavy wet snow that burdened the roof. Therefore, the region, which is the investor, agreed to close Podhorska Street around the school, which is part of road I/14. According to statics expert Hana Gattermayerová, the cause of the disaster was likely poorly conducted work on renovations in the building in the 1980s. The construction contractor did not cause it; they could not have known about the building's weaknesses, all of which were hidden beneath the plaster.

"We considered three options for how to proceed. We considered total demolition, partially redesigning the educational center project, or preserving it," Tulpa said. The total cost of remediation for the damaged building is estimated to be 92 million crowns; demolition and construction of a new one would cost double. For this reason, the decision was made to secure the school and continue with the ongoing construction of the vocational education center. According to Tulpa, students should return to school according to the original plans on September 1, 2020, despite the complications. "I am glad that the reconstruction will continue; we are saving unique fields throughout the republic," added Martin Kubáč, the school director, where students are trained as goldsmiths and other professions needed by the local jewelry industry.

"First, six steel towers will be built, which work is essentially already underway to support the entire facade facing Podhorska Street. On the other side of the building, new joists and formwork will be gradually created from the basement to the attic around the entire disaster site using traditional steel props and special wooden formwork. Only after the entire building is stabilized will it be possible to proceed with further construction work," described the securing process of the building Jiří Morávek from Metrostav. At the same time, builders must check for any hidden defects that may pose further risks to the structure, he added.