Some Of The Most Epic Construction Fails Of All Time

If you end up finding a bigger recipe for disaster, let us know. Until then, we think we’ve found the winner. Who actually thought that placing a tap right next to a power outlet could be a good idea? Not only is this bound to electrocute someone to death, it’s just a futile setup. There isn’t even a sink to accompany the tap! It’s construction fails like this that make you seriously wonder how some people are qualified for these jobs.

This is a truly incredible achievement – these construction workers must have broken the Guinness World Record for the fastest built balcony of all time. When they built this person’s apartment balcony in just under five minutes, little did they realize that underneath their fine piece of work were a pair of train tracks. You know what that means, folks – a train is probably due any minute. You may want to take that balcony down before the train does it for you!

When a construction team made this public phone station, did they just assume that there was a large community of giants living in the neighborhood? Not even the tallest person on the planet would be comfortable using this phone. How on earth is the phone supposed to be operated if pedestrians can’t a) pay to use it or b) dial the number of the person they want to call? The only successful phone call they can have is an incoming one.

We’re not so sure what was going through the mind of whoever installed this urinal directly above the toilet. The only guess we could make was that this is a part of town where people like to sit sideways while relieving themselves. Either that, or maybe there are couples who like to do everything together. If that’s the case, the one sat down is going to get an awkward glimpse of their fellow bathroom goer. To be honest, we prefer our urinals and toilet seats separate…

Who thought that planting a power station in the middle of a train track? I mean, how exactly is this going to play out? We can only see two things happening. Either, the train will ride straight into it and blow up everything in a 100-yard radius. Or, maybe this is actually an engineering marvel, and the object at the right side of the station is a diversion track that allows the train to bend around the station. We think the first option’s more likely…

Door handles are a truly fantastic invention. They allow us to open and close doors. Oops, maybe we spoke too soon. Apparently, not all door handles achieve this basic purpose, especially when they are too big for the door they are fitted on. One thing’s for sure, this is only going to be a pleasant experience if it’s the summer. A cool draft would probably be welcomed at this time of the year, but then you have the winter to consider…

Look, this isn’t the worst piece of construction ever done. At least the fence surrounding the plot of grass is short enough for most to just step or hop over to get to the benches. But this does pose the question: why not just put the benches in front of the fence? Also, it’s fair to say that there isn’t that much room between the benches and the fence in order to rest one’s feet. Basically, this could have been done differently…

Once again, another pole comes along to ruin our day. Seriously, how are two cars going in opposite directions going to work there way around this? We imagine that the speed limit is pretty high too. So either one car is going to have to stop, look and listen for incoming traffic or there’s going to be some serious road kill when all is said and done. One thing’s for sure, there are some big blind spots because of that pole.

All men have been there before: urinals are a goldmine for awkward situations. However, they are usually set up side by side against the same wall with partitions between each one. The urinals in this photo are clearly an exception to the rule, with two places on separate walls, yet having a couple of inches separating the two of them. Our only explanation for this bizarre decision is that it might be for couples who wish to hold hands while they urinate.

At this U.S. Air Base, jumping out of a strangely placed door doesn’t phase the best of the best. As you can see, these soldiers are just enjoying themselves after exiting the base. The question remains though: How exactly do they close and lock the door on their way out. Our theory is simple: the last to exit stealthily hangs from the roof as they apply the padlock before suspending themselves safely to the ground. Sounds legit, right?

What’s the point of a flight of stairs that look like escalators if they aren’t actually escalators? Maybe it was originally used as a moving stairway, but nowadays, this mall’s customers are forced to resort to using their feet to ascend to the next floor. Maybe this mall decided that they wanted to make their customers fitter in a day and age when the world has more obese people than ever. Either that or it’s just a classic construction fail.

They say, as long as you keep the first and last letters in the same place, then one can rearrange the other letters and the human eye can understand the word that was originally intended. We seriously hope that this will also apply to the drivers who see this sign. Just to clarify, in case the theory doesn’t work for everyone…”SOTP” in this situation is intended to mean STOP. We just want to warn you guys before you stumble across this potentially life-threatening sign.

This is a classic case of “What came first, the chicken or the egg?” In this situation, the chicken is the yellow indicators on either side of the road and the egg are the road crossings. Whatever the answer is, one must have come after the other. This means that whoever did build the second must have been either seriously tired or just unqualified for the job. In all fairness, this construction fail isn’t just a hazard, it also looks silly.

We’re seriously struggling to find a redeeming quality about this epic piece of construction. But we do have one obvious question: How does one open the door if there’s a railing completely blocking it? There is another question that needs to be addressed: What was the construction team thinking when they built the door so high above the stairs? If these tenants saw no use for the room behind this door, why have a door in the first place? We have too many questions…

We have a feeling that after this estate was built bang in the middle of this street, there was no question what was the busiest street in the city. Imagine rush hour: you can’t see where the traffic ends. When drivers reach the small junction, it’s painful to imagine how long it would take to wait in traffic. Also, it’s just an aesthetic nightmare. It looks ugly and there’s no denying the oddly shaped way the estate just sticks into the street.

There is only one way that we can explain the reasoning behind this bizarrely fitted set of steps. Whenever stairs are leading to a seemingly un-enterable space, it can only mean one thing. That’s right, these stairs are a one-way ticket to Hogwarts. The only problem though is that there’s no real run up to the entrance due to the awkward ninety-degree turn. However, maybe it could be a mystical portal to another dimension of some sort.

Why on earth would a bunch of windows be perfectly straight and then one window tilted to the side? Did the architects think that it would be cool little design, or is it actually part of the company’s marketing? We’re not totally sure how this came to be. However, does this mean that the entire room in this hotel is tilted at the same angle? If so, this is bound make taking a bath a tricky activity, to say the least.

As you can see, there is a staggering number of manholes on this seemingly inconspicuous road. Does this mean that inside each manhole is a tunnel connected to the sewer? If this is the case, you can imagine that these underground tunnels are intertwined in an almost spaghetti-like style. Never underestimate the intricacies of the sewage system. However, with this many manholes, you have to wonder whether or not every single one is absolutely necessary. We strongly doubt it.

This is one high school that didn’t completely take into consideration where to build the security gates. It seems like the construction team didn’t realize that they were building it over the school soccer field. For those of you who are not so clued up on soccer, the opposition sometimes kicks the ball from the right angle with a flag at its tip. So that begs the question: How on earth are they supposed to kick the ball over this gate?

We’re sure that’s the question on everyone’s lips when they see this photo. Obviously, no one’s batting an eyelid as far as the top balcony is concerned. However, what is the point of the bottom one? Why have a balcony if you have no normal access to it? If we’re going to put a positive spin on this, maybe the tenants above get two balconies for the price of one. All they have to do is stealthily jump from one to the other. Easy.

Now, unless these stairs magically come to life and start moving like the ones you’d expect to see in Hogwarts, we could be looking at the most futile set of stairs on the planet. On the other hand, these steps and rails could prove to be a perfect environment for free runners to perform some awesome stunts on. But besides being a haven for Parkour experts, we can’t really see these stairs having much use for anything else…

We consider this more of a construction fail that has been rectified rather than a situation beyond repair. Whoever thought of the idea of sawing a chunk of wood out of the door to fit around the toilet is an absolute genius. We’re happy to say that this photo doesn’t deserve to be on this list. However, these photos do aim to amuse as well as bemuse you. However, the hole kind of defeats the purpose of having a door in the first place…

That’s right folks, we’re going to spell it out for you: this gate is pointless, not unless another wall is built on the other side of it. Until then, one can easily jump over the little hedge and make their way up to the apartments. This gate even had a code in order to enter. The guy waiting for his friend to enter is just looking at the camera like, “why does he even bother using the gate?”

This photo seriously breaks our hearts. What were the construction team thinking when they tried matching this sink with this excessively long tap? Sure, one is able to wash their hands. But what good is personal hygiene if one is just going to flood their bathroom every time they turn on the tap? In all seriousness, we are simply shocked that these sort of fails are occurring in the world in this day and age. This should be a crime.

We believe that this cashpoint must be located in the same neighborhood as the aforementioned giant phone station. How could the bank be so inconsiderate in regards to its normal-sized clients? Especially when the majority of the world is unable to reach the cashpoint they had fitted into this wall. There are going to be many people who have no choice but to use their cards when they make payments, all because this ridiculous construction prevents them from withdrawing cash.

Another construction team who failed to take basic factors into consideration were responsible for the tightest of turns on this stairway. It’s seriously difficult for even the skinniest of individuals to make their way around this bend. Once again, it would take a group of free runners to successfully navigate this near-on impossible flight of stairs. For once, maybe taking away the banister would make this situation safer. Maybe we’re better off using the lift the next time we come to visit.

Doors are a useful, conventional way of entering or exiting an apartment. However, when you open one and all you can see is a five-story drop to your certain doom, the door probably should never have been built there. Sure, if there were some spiral stairs connecting each door, we’d consider this a useful little emergency exit. However, there isn’t a spiral staircase, so until it’s fitted, these doors are at best, absolutely redundant, and at worst, lethal.

Garages are a perfectly useful storage space. If you’re not going to park your car in there, they’re great for storing basically anything. However, we believe that they’re most effective when they are built on the ground or just in a position where one is able to actually park their car. The only way one can successfully get their vehicle in and out of this one is by doing some Evel Kneivel-esque, death-defying stunts and hoping that you don’t crash.

We would be perfectly happy with this setup if there was at least ramp to do some death-defying stunts over this unique bridge. At 80 miles an hour, you could easily do this jump and live to tell the tail. Or how about a bridge for the bridge? Or moreover, how about just building one bridge that is completely connected and that way, we won’t have to start brainstorming ideas as to how we’re going to get to the other side of the river.

Now, there’s many doors that have windows. In this case though, we believe that it’s window that has just happens to have a door. This guy thought it was so cool that he needed to get photo of himself standing next to the bizarre entrance. Unlike other oddly placed doors, this one seems a bit more realistic to reach to get into and to jump out of. However, this doesn’t take away from the fact that doors should always been built to the ground or floor.

Why would it make sense to refer to this door as a fire exit if you’re unable to get to it without a ladder? You’d have more success driving your car through the wall than trying to get out of this undeniably futile “exit.” Which genius thought this was actually a good idea? We believe that there’s approximately 124.3% chance that this fire exit will not save anyone’s life. Only Daenerys from Game Of Thrones would be able to survive this fire…

We’re willing to give this architect the benefit the doubt as we have a good theory surrounding this ridiculously placed door. This is downtown Wabash, Indiana – a place that, according to the mural on this wall is a center for “arts, entertainment, dining, boutiques and antiques.” Therefore, the door is possibly an piece of artistic expression that doesn’t actually have a literal entrance. Instead, it is a metaphorical entrance to the this charming little town. Then again, maybe not.

Once again, we have a stairway that leads us to a mysterious realm, a portal to another dimension. Maybe this time, it is the legendary stairway to Hogwarts? Maybe this flight of stairs actually has a mind of its own and moves magically around this mall, helping people transport instantly to whichever floor they desire. We sincerely wish this was the case. However, the likelihood is that it’s just another ridiculously placed set of the stairs, with no other purpose than being annoying.

Again, this isn’t the worst construction fail on the list, by any means. At least the person living in the apartment can look out of 60% of the window. The other 30% is blocked off by a recently built flight of stairs. Surely the council must’ve asked for the tenant’s permission before they blocked a significant chunk of their natural source of light! At least, they should have! If not, then that’s just absolute crime. We’re serious, it’s probably illegal to do that.

We’re not lawyers but surely this is violating some sort of health and safety regulations. How can you expect someone who is desperate to go, to come in here and crouch into a fetal position in order to relieve themselves? Either or that, or we guess you could stand on the edge of the bowl. We’re really scraping the barrel, trying to excuse whoever decided to have a toilet in this tiny space. To be honest, we only recommend that one takes a number one in this situation…

Whoever decided to have this pole and collection of bricks planted on this bike path, must’ve had one thing in mind: as long as the bricks aren’t stacked too high, then the bike riders should have the common sense to know when to give way to incoming traffic. Also, they could always just ride on the grass. Or, if you’re really feeling lucky, why not try doing a jump over the bricks. Go on, break a leg! We dare you…

We assume that the stack of bricks is necessary in order to prevent the bridge from collapsing. However, the real concern here is this: why does the bridge require this? Surely all bridge are only authorized for construction once  it is deemed to be reliable and safe. It seems like this construction team, from top to bottom, got a lot of things mixed up during this project and as a result, were forced to make this contingency plan.

There are many construction fails on this list where poles have a big part to play. This is another classic example. In all fairness, it shouldn’t be too problematic to dodge this oddly placed pole. But why on earth is it there in the first place?! If we were able to understand the reasoning behind this engineering decision, then maybe we would reconsider using this photo. Until that happens, we’re going to leave this up to frustrate all the bikers out there.

You might remember the cashpoint earlier on that was way too high to reach for the average human being. However, we’ve now found a cashpoint that first any human being, no matter how big or small, can use! However, if you’re of an average height, you’re definitely going to have to one of three things in order to extract money. Either you’ll have to sit down like this patient fellow, bend down to see the screen or kneel down and hurt your knees on the concrete.

There seems to be a recurring pattern throughout these photos. For 99% of them, you’re probably asking yourself, “what’s the point?” This question certainly applies here. What is the point of a pair of blinds if there’s no window to use it on? Is it simply to make it look as if there’s a window in the room? Is it in order to make the room look more conventional than it actually is? Whatever the answer is, we still don’t know what the point of it is…

Let’s just get this straight – at the top of these stairs, there is no gate. This is a steel fence with no logical way of getting out other than climbing it. However, like some of the other construction fails on this list; we are convinced that this site would be a perfect location for some awesome free running. There is no denying that some gymnasts would have a lot of fun breaking their necks on this makeshift playground.

Like other toilets on this list, there is just no way to take a number two on this thing, unless you’re happy to sit on the edge of the seat. We could be getting this all wrong though. Maybe the tenants replaced their toilet and put the broken one here under the sink. They’re just waiting to throw it away but out of lazy, haven’t done anything about it. However, there is some sort of cord connecting it to the wall…

It’s a usual occurrence in life – you go to the train station, thinking that you have to catch your train on a certain platform. However, you realize at the last minute that you chose the wrong platform. So you take the overpass that carries you over the tracks. No problem, right? Wrong. At least, you’ll have a big problem if you try using this overpass. Unless you’re confident at pulling off Mission Impossible style stunts, you’re probably going to miss your train.

One theory comes to mind when we saw this window. Maybe, just maybe, a descendant of Count Dracula lives in the attic of this typical family home. After realizing their true lineage, the teenage vampire knew that it wasn’t a good idea to have the sun blazing through his window. Therefore, he telekinetically collected a bunch of bricks, built a wall and put up against the window. This way, he could live in absolute darkness. Or maybe, some average joe made some maddeningly confusing decisions.

The word “Exit” comes from the Latin term “exitus” which literally means “to go out.” As you can see, the top of this door has an exit sign above. However, you can clearly see that if one is to pass through this particular door, then you will not go out of anywhere. You will remain in the same mall and waste your time wondering why you walked through this door when you easily could’ve walked through the large space next to it.

As you can see, this park has a very pleasant path running through it. Also, there is delightful little gate ensuring a secure entrance and exit to and from the aforementioned park. However, these two distinctive features don’t line up. Why is that, exactly? We suspect it’s because a constructor was having a bad day at the office and decide to take his frustrations out on the visitors of this enchanted park. Either that or he got some measurements wrong.

The world has gone security crazy in the last two decades. It’s hard to walk around without someone point a camera at you, making sure that you’re not doing anything suspicious. However, we don’t think you have anything to worry about if you’re at this particular bank. The camera hasn’t moved for the last twenty minutes. Either the security system has had a power cut or someone needs to reconfigure the settings on this camera!

There seems to be many construction teams that enjoy placing doors in bizarre locations. However, we’re ready to forgive all the others, because at least we knew how high the drop was. However, in this photo, we have no idea how far someone must fall after walking out of this door and before they hit the ground. But we do see a bunch of bushes below. So at least they are there to break one’s fall. We sincerely hope that on the inside of that door, it says, “do not enter.”

Ninja Journalist