"Considerable" Defects Found in World Cup Stadiums
January 9, 2006
There could be severe consequences for spectators should panic or fire break out in some of stadiums hosting the 2006 World Cup in Germany, according to a short statement issued by Stiftung Warentest magazine.
"Stiftung Warentest has examined the construction safety of the World Cup stadiums and identified serious deficiencies that could have grave consequences if panic broke out," the magazine's statement read. "Fire prevention is also not as it should be."
Magazine officials said they would not comment on where the safety hazards turned up ahead of a press conference scheduled for Jan. 19. A World Cup Organizing Committee (OC) spokesperson added that the committee had not been consulted for the report and respond when it received a detailed account of the stadiums' shortcomings.
"I know that an inspection has taken place, but nothing beyond that," said OC Vice-President Horst R. Schmidt (photo). "If there are problems it would only be fair to allow us to comment on them."
Problems have turned up before
It's not the first time structural faults have been found in the 12 World Cup stadiums that Germany has spent about 1.5 billion euros ($1.81 billion) building or renovating for the tournament that runs from June 9 to July 9.
Kaiserslautern's Fritz Walter Stadium had to be closed for a few days in December so supports could be put in place after a large crack appear in the east stand that lead the cancellation of a German league soccer match.
The new roof of Eintracht Frankfurt's stadium was unable to keep out the rain, leading to torrents of water falling onto the field during the Confederations Cup final last year as well as a recent Bundesliga match.
Stadium officials in Hanover accepted the report calmly and emphasized there was no reason for the public to be concerned.
"At this moment we have not reached the standard demanded by FIFA," security chief Heinz Mars said. "But we are working on every point one-by-one and are on schedule."