Estrada has near miss

Estrada has near miss

MANILA (AP): A chandelier that crashed near President Joseph Estrada on his first day in office had not been inspected for nearly a quarter-century and fell by accident, an official said yesterday.

A local company said the chandeliers at Manila's Malacanang Palace had not undergone any safety inspection since it installed the lights in 1975 at the height of strongman Ferdinand Marcos' martial law rule, Press Undersecretary Icasiano Gutierrez said.

"It was neither a case of bad luck nor the threat of sabotage but an accident waiting to happen," Gutierrez said in a statement.

A government investigation has concluded that the chandelier was simply too old and brittle and gave in to its weight, he added.