Rio Removes Unlicensed Glass Staircase at Vidigal Lookout Over Safety Risks

Overview

• Municipal public-order agents dismantled the glass-and-iron staircase on Tuesday at the Mirante do Arvrão in Vidigal after inspecting the site.
• The attraction lacked city authorization and had been used by visitors to take photos facing the Leblon shoreline.
• Seop technicians deemed the structure extremely unstable and vulnerable to sea-air corrosion, countering installers’ claims of a 600-kilogram load capacity.
• The staircase measured about five meters with 12 steps and a 1.1-meter guardrail, weighed roughly one tonne, and sat about 25 meters above the nearest ground.
• City inspectors learned of the installation on Friday, notified and padlocked it on Saturday, then removed it with the owner’s cooperation, with Seop urging regularization and reports via the 1746 service line.