I’ll add that the reason the balcony collapsed does not seem to have been that there were more people on it than it was designed for, but because shoddy workmanship allowed the support beams to rot.

I think you’re also right about the value of a sign saying how much weight a balcony can bear. But I still think balconies need to be designed to support the weight of the number of people who might reasonably stand on it/crowd onto it.

The slippery slope argument hardly seems appropriate here. I would wager that the overwhelming majority of grown adults who are, in the eyes of the law, able to be held fully responsible for their own decisions are well aware that metal does not belong in microwaves. I would bet that nearly every adult of sound mind can recognize bomb-making as an inherently dangerous activity.

I would also bet that only a tiny fraction of adults who are decided to be legally responsible for their own actions could estimate the structural limits of a balcony just by looking at it. As such, it makes perfect sense to inform them. Whether they heed that information is entirely their decision- as I’ve mentioned, in the eyes of the law they are responsible for their own decisions- but that information should at least be made available.

Alas, I think that if you make a cool place to stand and look and wave, people will stand there. Often they won’t pay attention to/notice signs. I think that’s what’s called an “attractive nuisance.”

Also, I fear that if you put notices in apartments saying “No more than 3 people/600 lbs allowed on balcony, whichever is the lesser” you will soon find yourself adding signs that say “No metal in the microwave” “Do not leave the kitchen when something is cooking on the stove” “Do not leave children unattended” and “No bomb assembly permitted” and soon there will be lots and lots of signs to read, which everyone will ignore.

I am on board entirely with your story but this comment: not so much. That logic makes no sense to me. You are asking why the balcony was big enough for 13 people, and shouldn’t have been. Does that mean that a balcony meant for one person should only be the width of one person? Lots of people can squeeze into a small car / space / booth: more than probably should. A clear notice inside each apartment indicating maximum weight that balcony could hold should have existed, in addition to the balcony actually having been up to code.

Good point. But the real question then is “If the balcony wasn’t meant to hold that many people, why was it big enough for them?”

It’s still just dreadful, on all accounts, and I’m sorry that the NYT tried looking for a bigger story than the loss of six people.

And, great post, Sumac.