Parent contacts Channel 11, City of Pittsburgh about safety concern at new playground

PITTSBURGH — A contractor with the city of Pittsburgh responded swiftly this week after a parent contacted 311 to report multiple loose bolts on a brand-new slide.

“I called 311 and I’m glad they responded promptly and fixed it, but I shouldn’t have to,” said Casey Stapleton, a father of six.

Stapleton is a Lawrenceville resident, and he and his family have been enjoying the new playground at Arsenal Park. His children, he said, recently discovered 10 loose bolts where the upper and lower halves of the slide connect.

“If that thing just dropped, imagine some kid going down and God knows what would happen to them,” he said.

He decided to contact Channel 11, along with the city, on Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the Mayor’s Office told us that the playground remains under warranty, and the contractor responded to the complaint right away and had tightened the bolts by Wednesday afternoon. The city plans to investigate to ensure the loose bolts weren’t the result of vandalism.

The spokesperson told us that the Department of Public Works “performs regular safety checks on the playgrounds to ensure compliance for safety.”

The report comes a few months after Channel 11 spoke with a father whose daughter died on aging playground equipment in Ross Township.

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