Coating Of Willis Tower Glass Ledge Cracks Underneath Stockton Family's Feet
STOCKTON (CBS SF) — A Stockton family watched the floor--103 stories high--crack beneath them on their recent trip to Chicago.
The family went to the Willis Tower observation deck Wednesday night to experience The Ledge, a popular tourist attraction where people stand in glass boxes extending 4 feet out from the top of the Western Hemisphere's largest building. What should have been a thrilling view of the city, turned into a stomach dropping experience.
"We started standing up at the same time, and it was at that moment we start hearing the noise and start feeling the cracking of the class," said Antonio Saldana.
It took the family a second to comprehend what was happening.
"You could see the glass just like a spider web immediately light up—shattered. Completely shattered," he said.
But building officials say it's not as bad as it looks.
"This coating does not affect the structural integrity of the ledge in any way. Occasionally the coating will crack, as it is designed, in order to protect the surface of the glass," they said in a statement.
Back home in Stockton, Garibay said he's a bit shaken up, but enjoyed his visit to Chicago.
"Up until that second, it was a very good experience," he said.