Crane Accidents #5
This page was last updated on 05/06/2010
Broken Crane Halts Rail Traffic and Closes Streets in Jersey City
By THE NEW YORK TIMES
ERSEY CITY, April 17 — A broken construction crane teetered 40 stories above Washington Boulevard today, forcing the closing of several city blocks and a four-hour suspension of light rail service on this city’s waterfront. The 330-foot Manitowoc crane was being operated on a high-rise apartment building when a cable broke shortly before 10 a.m., said Sgt. Edgar Martinez, a spokesman for the Jersey City police. No injuries were reported and no one was evacuated, Sergeant Martinez said. The mishap at the Marbella Luxury Apartments, a 42-story building under construction downtown, reminded many people here of a more serious accident last year. In January 2002, the arm of a 460-foot crane at an office building also on Washington Boulevard malfunctioned, forcing the evacuation of 850 residents and the closing of several blocks for four days. “Last year we were dealing with a German-made crane and it took several days to get the experts and equipment into town,” Sergeant Martinez said. “Fortunately this is an American crane, and it only took a matter of hours to secure the site.” Sergeant Martinez said, “The workers expect the whole process to take about six hours, so traffic will continue to be disrupted, but we hope everything will return to normal by Saturday.” This afternoon, the crane’s owners, Vergona Construction of Englewood, dispatched two smaller hydraulic cranes to the site and secured the Manitowoc as workers continued to make repairs, said Joseph Vergona, a co-owner of the company. “The only difficulty was getting up to the top to do the repair,” he said. “It’s a pretty easy job — we’ll replace the broken parts and it will be ready to go back to work.” The accident suspended service on New Jersey Transit’s Hudson-Bergen Light Rail system at the Harsimus Cover station for about four hours. New Jersey Transit provided shuttle service to the displaced passengers before full service was restored at 2:45 p.m., said Ken Miller, a spokesman for the transit system. Shortly before 8 p.m. tonight, the streets were reopened and traffic was back to normal.
UPDATE OSHA Cites Weymouth, Mass., Employer in Waltham Tipover Death, Stresses Need for Proper Worker Training to Prevent Similar Deaths
METHUEN, Mass. — The death of a Massachusetts worker, killed when his truck tipped over while he was working in an aerial lift, could have been prevented if the truck had been properly positioned and the worker trained in its correct operation, according to the U.S. Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Brite Lite Electrical Co., Inc., of Weymouth, Mass., has been cited for four alleged serious violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and faces $14,700 in fines following the Nov. 24 death of Dennis O’Neil of Tewksbury, Mass. O’Neill was working in the bucket of an aerial lift, stringing Christmas lights on Waltham Common, when the truck tipped over, causing him to fall to the ground. OSHA’s inspection found that the truck had been positioned on soft soil rather than a solid surface and its outriggers had not been properly deployed to effectively stabilize it, explained Richard Fazzio, OSHA’s area director for Middlesex and Essex counties. As a result, OSHA cited the coany for failing to ensure the outriggers were placed on a solid surface and that employees were properly trained to do so. “Trucks with aerial lifts must have their outriggers fully deployed and properly supported,” “said Fazzio. “Training employees in the specific requirements and safe work practices for each type of vehicle they work with is the most effective means of preventing tragedies such as this one.” Brite Lite was also cited for three hazards found on a second truck: a broken ladder railing, unlabeled controls and employees exposed to fall hazards while operating an aerial lift due to lack of operating instructions, load labels and documentation of required equipment testing and lack of annual inspections by qualified personnel. OSHA defines a serious violation as one in which there us a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazardous condition about which the employer knew or should have known. The inspection was conducted by OSHA’s Methuen, Mass., area office. The telephone number is (617) 565-8110. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is dedicated to saving lives, preventing injuries and illnesses, and protecting America’s workers. Safety and health add value to business, the workplace and life. For more information, visit www.osha.gov .
Man Killed At Fairfax Construction Site
Reported by: 9News Web produced by: Liz Foreman 4/21/03 12:08:59 PM
A man has been killed in an accident at a construction site on Red Bank Road and Fair Lane in Fairfax. Police said the man was digging a trench around 11 a.m. Monday when he was hit by a 2,000 pound steel plate being handled by a crane operator. An Air Care helicopter quickly arrived on the scene but there was nothing emergency crews could do to save the man’s life. The victim’s name has not yet been released.
Crane falls on Wal-Mart roof; store is closed
JIM STERN, Gazette Staff Writer April 18, 2003
RAYNHAM — A construction crane toppled onto an addition of Wal-Mart, severely damaging store infrastructure and forcing the indefinite closure of the mega department store yesterday. No one was injured and the cause of the accident is being debated by various officials. Fire Department officials said a crane being used to load a heating and air conditioning unit onto the roof of the new Super Wal-Mart fell forward shortly after 4:30 p.m. yesterday. The 100-ton crane severely damaged rooftop support beams, a back wall, gas pipes and electrical lines inside the store, Building Inspector Rodman Palmer said. Palmer said the store will remain closed until a structural engineer determines the building to be sound. Construction officials on scene declined to comment yesterday. Lettering on the fallen crane read “Astro Crane,” of Stow. An official cause of the collapse was being debated last night. Fire Lt. James Januse said officials from Astro Crane said a strong wind gust knocked the crane over. Several fire officials said they were skeptical of the explanation, as fire sources said they did not believe the wind was strong enough to push over a 100-ton piece of machinery. Palmer said he was led to believe from interviews and personal observations the jib on the crane extended to far low and back, causing the mechanical crane to drop and the back end of the crane to fall forward. The store was closed for the remainder of the day and Palmer said it was uncertain when the store would re-open. As of 9 p.m., yesterday, a Wal-Mart hired engineer was traveling from Arkansas to study the damage at the store. Palmer said a store construction crew would be working overnight. The State Department of Public Safety and Special Operations were on scene last night. Inspector Paul Wakem declined to answer any questions from reporters. The accident scene created heavy interest among onlookers. Two hours after the crane had fallen, more than 50 people had gathered at the scene. Many carried binoculars and video recorders. One family sat in lawn chairs.
Two injured in garage construction accident
Lisa Florkowskicavalier Daily
Yesterday’s accident at the Emmet Street parking garage site occured when a concrete slab attached to a crane fell from its fixture. The two workers who were riding on the beam at the time sustained injuries and were taken to the University Medical Center for treatment. Two workers sustained injuries and broken bones yesterday at the construction site of the new Emmet Street parking garage when a concrete slab fell, according to University Police Sgt. Melissa Fielding. “About 1:45 today there were two constructions workers on top of a concrete slab that was being lifted by a crane,” Fielding said. “The concrete slab holding the employees dropped 20 feet, injuring them.” The problem stemmed from a piece of metal that was already supposed to be welded to the slab, she said. Fielding could not detail the injuries sustained by the workers, whose names have not yet been released. Both were taken to the University Medical Center. “All I know about their injuries is that they were transported to the emergency room for treatment,” Fielding said. At the site of the accident, Kurt Gould, an employee with Donley’s Construction, Co., shed some light into the nature of the accident. “Basically, we had an erection error — very simple,” he said. University Spokesperson Carol Wood offered some details of the events that transpired. “At about two this afternoon a precast concrete T fell at the parking garage construction site,” she said. Wood added that one worker “immediately was taken to the hospital with back injuries. He was conscious and alert.”
UPDATE Potentially Fatal Westwood, Mass., Construction Accident Results in OSHA Citations and $224,000 in Proposed Penalties for Employers
BOSTON — Exposing employees to potentially fatal safety hazards at a Westwood, Mass., construction site has resulted in two Massachusetts employers and one Vermont employer being cited and fined a total of $224,000 by the U.S. Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA has cited Jan Five, doing business as Alexandra Construction, and Epernay Design and Construction, Inc., both of Newton, Mass., as well as Northern Construction Dynamics of Hyde Park, Vt., for alleged willful violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act after the agency investigated an Oct. 1, 2002, accident at the Westwood High School construction project. In the accident, a 55-foot steel column toppled over after it had been placed on its foundation as soon as the crane line holding it was released. “Fortunately, no one was injured in this incident, which could have had tragic consequences,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. “These companies knew the safety standards they should have been following, and they all are being cited for willful violations of the law.” According to Brenda Gordon, OSHA’s area director for southeastern Massachusetts, Alexandra Construction, as the general contractor on the site, is being cited for three willful violations, including: allowing steel erection to begin before foundation material was sufficiently strong, and before giving written notification to the steel erector; allowing steel erection to begin before giving written notification to the steel erector that anchor bolts had been repaired; and modifying anchor bolts in an unsafe manner without the approval of the engineer of record. This company is also being cited for one other-than-serious violation for failing to secure a compressed gas cylinder. The total proposed penalty for this contractor is $126,000. Epernay Design and Construction is being cited for a willful violation, with a proposed penalty of $56,000, for modifying anchor bolts in an unsafe manner without the approval of the engineer of record. Epernay Design and Construction was in charge of preparing the foundation of the building prior to steel erection. Northern Construction Dynamics, the steel erection contractor, is being cited for one willful violation for beginning to erect steel before receiving written notification from the controlling contractor that foundation material had sufficient strength to support the steel. It is also cited for an other-than-serious violation for providing a discharged fire extinguisher for emergency use. The company’s total proposed penalty is $42,000. A willful violation is defined by OSHA as one committed with an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and regulations. OSHA’s area office in Braintree, Mass., conducted the inspection. Its telephone number is 617-565-6924. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is dedicated to saving lives, preventing injuries and illnesses, and protecting America’s workers. Safety and health add value to business, the workplace and life. For more information, visit www.osha.gov.
Construction Accident Injures Workers In Westminster.
Apr 3, 2003 1:02 pm US/Eastern
A crane operator says he was laying a concrete slab when it fell onto the top of the garage causing a partial collapse, which knocked 3 workers off the structure. Two of the workers were flown to Shock Trauma, a third worker was taken by ambulance. So far, there’s no word on the three workers conditions.
Investigation under way after crane topples onto highway
Investigators are trying to determine the cause of an accident Saturday evening involving a hydraulic boom crane at the I-280/Maumee River bridge construction site. Luckily, the road was closed because of the construction and the accident did not hinder traffic. The stretch of the highway where the incident occurred was expected to open at 6 a.m. today. The crane was lifting a 58,000-pound concrete form when it tipped over into the northbound lane of I-280 about 5:30 p.m. The name of the operator, who was treated for a cut finger at a local hospital, was not released by the bridge contractor, Fru-Con, Inc., of Ballwin, Mo. The crane was working on a section of the bridge approach between Front Street and Starr Avenue. Joe Rutherford, an Ohio Department of Transportation spokesman, said the I-280 shutdown was the fourth of 10 planned weekend closings related to construction of five concrete piers that support the roadway leading onto the new bridge. “Anytime we’re going to be doing lifting of heavy equipment over traffic, we don’t want any traffic on the road at all. That’s the reason we close,” he said. Workers spent yesterday cleaning debris from the accident and removing the damaged crane and form, which fell from a height of about 60 feet. He said Fru-Con is looking for a new crane. The expressway is scheduled to be closed this weekend for additional pier construction if the company finds a replacement crane and form in time, he said. Such cranes can lift up to 250,000 pounds. Construction of the cable-stayed bridge began a year ago and is scheduled for completion in 2006. Additional I-280 closings for other bridge construction work also are scheduled. But Mr. Rutherford said during the heavy traffic period of Memorial Day through Labor Day, weekend closings will be dropped in favor of 7 p.m.-6 a.m. weekday closings.
Big Dig worker killed in construction accident
By Associated Press, 3/24/2003 17:18
BOSTON (AP) A Big Dig construction worker was killed Monday after he was hit by a weight attached to a crane, authorities said. The accident happened at a Big Dig work site at D Street and Hall Road in South Boston at about 10 a.m., said Lt. Richard Powers of the Boston Fire Department. The victim, a 55-year-old Roxbury man, was apparently standing behind the crane while working on the Interstate 90 portion of the Central Artery/Third Harbor Tunnel project, said Big Dig spokesman Sean O’Neill. His name was not immediately released pending notification of relatives. He is the fourth worker killed while working on the Big Dig, which began in the late 1980s. Central Artery officials, OSHA, the Department of Public Safety and the Suffolk District Attorney’s office are investigating whether reckless conduct, mechanical issues or negligence may have contributed to the worker’s death. David Procopio, a spokesman for the Suffolk District Attorney’s office, said the crane operator was taken to Boston Medical Center, where he was treated for stress-related symptoms. The $14.6 billion Central Artery/Third Harbor Tunnel project includes the Ted Williams Tunnel under Boston Harbor, an underground connection from Interstate 90 to the Williams tunnel, miles of underground highway in downtown Boston replacing the old elevated Interstate 93 Central Artery, and the new Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge.
Worker Injured As Downtown Crane Topples; Man’s Condition ‘Stable’ At Northwestern Hospital
March 20, 2003
CHICAGO — A construction worker was injured when a crane he was operating tipped over at a Loop work site Thursday morning. The worker was operating the crane at the site, the intersection of Franklin and Monroe streets, when the machine somehow tipped over, according to Central District Sgt. William Kelly. Emergency crews received a call about the pin-in accident at 8:29 a.m., according to First Battalion Chief James Mindak. ithin 15 minutes or so, crews were able to remove the operator, who appeared to be in his 30s, from the cab of the crane. The man was believed to be in “stable condition” and was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital as of 9:05 a.m. Four to five firefighters helped removed the operator from the crane at about 8:55 a.m. The man appeared to be bleeding from the head, but was still conscious and alert, Mindak said. He added that crews had to negotiate “between machinery” to remove the man. A representative of Northwestern Memorial Hospital could not immediately say whether the hospital eceived the patient. As of 9 a.m., the crane still was tipped over on the south side of Franklin Street, which had been closed off from Madison to Monroe streets. The street has since been reopened to traffic. During the rescue process, four fire trucks and an ambulance lined the streets around the construction site. There were also two red sport utility vehicles commissioned to the Fire Department. A nursing supervisor at Northwestern confirmed that the construction worker was brought there, but could not immediately provide his condition or age. An Occupational Safety and Health Administration representative said they sent an investigator to the scene and could not immediately provide any more information.
UPDATE OSHA Cites Sea Island Landscaper for Exposing Workers to Electrical Hazards; Agency plans compliance assistance program to prevent electrocutions
SAVANNAH, Ga. — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Sea Island Company, Inc., for failure to protect workers from electrical hazards that contributed to a worker’s death. OSHA is proposing a $63,000 penalty. On Sept. 18, the day of the accident, employees were using a truck crane to remove and replace trees located near overhead power lines. The truck’s crane was positioned near the 7,200-volt lines. While lifting one of the trees into place, wire mesh around the roots of the tree came in contact with the power lines, transmitting an electrical current down to a worker who was standing near the base of the crane. The worker was seriously injured by the ensuing electrical shock. He died Oct. 14. The agency issued one willful citation to Sea Island Company, Inc., a grounds-maintenance and land development company, for allowing the crane to be operated near energized overhead power lines without taking any type of protective measures. “If the employer had positioned the crane away from the power lines or had the power company de-energize the nearby lines, this tragedy could have been avoided,” stated John Deifer, OSHA’s Savannah area director. Because electrocutions and shocks are a major cause of accidents in the Southeast, the agency is developing a program to address the hazards, including those associated with overhead power lines. The program will include training, outreach and compliance assistance, as well as strong and fair enforcement when employers expose workers to these dangerous conditions. The company has 15 working days to contest the OSHA citations and proposed penalties before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The inspection of the work site was conducted by OSHA’s Savannah area office at 450 Mall Blvd., Suite J; phone: (912) 652-4393. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is dedicated to saving lives, preventing injuries and illnesses, and protecting America’s workers. Safety and health add value to business, the workplace and life. For more information, visit www.osha.gov.
Crane topples at Port, killing longshoreman
By The daily World staff
A longshoreman operating a crane on the dock at Terminal 2 at the Port of Grays Harbor was killed at 10 o’clock this morning after the rig overturned and he was trapped inside. Douglas Lunceford, 65, of Montesano, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Leonard Barnes, the Port’s business & development director. Billy Swor, dispatcher for Local 24 of the International Longshore & Warehouse Union, said the man was a member of the union’s maintenance and repair unit, an ILWU affiliate. The crane was property of the Port of Grays Harbor, according to Mary Nelson, Port finance director. Several companies, including Rognlin’s Inc. and Quigg Bros. Inc., were working on the dock on the construction of Ag Processing Inc., the new bulk grain – loading facility scheduled to open in September. Aberdeen firefighters and police got the emergency call around 10 a.m. The Coast Guard was summoned after oil from the overturned rig was discovered leaking into the Harbor. A Rognlin’s crane was called in to try to right the overturned crane. Fire Chief Dave Carlberg said Dick Seaman, the department chaplain, had been called to offer counseling to the victim’s family and co – workers.
Construction Worker Electrocuted
Lake Milton Gerry Ricciutti
A North Lima man is dead, following an accident in a highway construction zone. State troopers say 37-year-old Peter DeLucia, Jr. was killed Wednesday morning along Interstate 76 near Lake Milton. Investigators say the victim was part of a construction crew working on a paving project on the interstate. He reportedly was moving concrete barricades with the help of a crane, when the crane came into contact with power lines overhead, electrocuting DeLucia.
WORKER KILLED IN FACTORY HORROR
BY SIMON BLACKBURN 11:00 – 19 March 2003
Health and safety officials are investigating a horrific accident at a South Devon factory in which a 52-year-old worker died. The man, working for a Newton Abbot engineering firm, was killed after a sheet of metal fell on his head. Police officers went to Centristic Ltd on the Heathfield industrial estate at 7am yesterday. Initial reports said that the worker, who has not been named, had suffered serious injuries. Paramedics were called to the metal fabrication company in Cavalier Road. The man was found dead on the floor of the factory by the ambulance crews. An ambulance service spokesman said: “We had a call around 6.40am. We found the man on the floor. He had massive head injuries. “He was clearly dead.” The company did not wish to comment. Police have now handed the case to the Health and Safety Executive. They have set up an investigation team. A HSE official said a sheet of metal measuring 4meters by 2meters fell on the worker. “The metal was being lifted mechanically at the time,” she revealed. HSE officials were at the site yesterday and today. They will interview any witnesses and send a report to the Exeter coroner for his consideration at a full inquest later in the year. There are no suspicious circumstances. A post mortem examination was expected to be carried out later today. An inquest may open tomorrow. A full hearing will be held at a later date.
UPDATE Indiana jury awards $16M to amputee
Associated Press March 19, 2003
HAMMOND, Ind. — A Highland man whose foot was amputated in a 1998 industrial accident has been awarded $16.5 million by a federal jury. John Mesman, 44, contended in the lawsuit that Crane Pro Services designed a defective crane and that his employer, Infra Metals of East Chicago, failed to take adequate steps to ensure worker safety. Spokesmen for Crane Pro Services and Infra Metals declined to comment today on the jury decision. The accident took place at an Infra Metals plant in Portage on Jan. 17, 1998. Mesman was inside a rail car hooking up steel to be unloaded when an overhead crane dropped a 14,000-pound load of steel inside the rail car and hit him. Lawyers for the companies contended Mesman should not have been in the rail car at the time the load was dropped. Kenneth J. Allen, Mesman’s attorney, said the verdict issued Tuesday was “a solid victory for the safety of all working men and women in Indiana.” Mesman sought in the lawsuit to be compensated for the accident, which he claimed cost him $232,000 in past medical bills, about $850,000 in potential bills in the future and more than $650,000 in lost wages. “This verdict will help restore John’s dignity and provide for his future, but it will never fully replace what was taken from him,” Allen told The Times of Munster. Allen said Mesman continued to work part time.
Accident Shuts Down Portion Of Ridge Avenue
Reported by: 9News Web produced by: Liz Foreman Last updated: 3/11/03 11:55:52 AM
There’s a bit of a mess at the intersection of Ridge and Highland in Columbia Township Tuesday afternoon. The boom on a construction truck hit wires overhead Tuesday morning, leaving the power lines hanging only four feet off the ground. The truck is used to transport bricks. The owner’s name was not made available. Police are redirecting traffic in the area and Ridge Avenue is closed heading south at the intersection.
Scissor lift accident victims recovering
RANCHO CUCAMONGA — An electrical contractor and his female employee remained hospitalized Sunday, two days after they were injured in a fall from a scissor lift. The contractor, Juan Francisco Garcia, 29, of Pomona, and his employee, 25-year-old Zulema Olvera of Pomona, were in satisfactory condition at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, hospital nursing supervisor Joy Flint said Sunday. Garcia and Olvera suffered numerous broken bones and other injuries when a lift they were standing on at a business in the 11400 block of Sixth Street toppled over, sending them approximately 20 feet down to the ground, San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies. The pair were installing electrical conduit when the accident occurred. The accident is being investigated by Cal-OSHA, as well as by deputies from the Rancho Cucamonga Sheriff’s Station.
UPDATE Burned Dam Worker In Critical Condition
A 22-year-old Arkansas man was in critical condition Wednesday, a day after he was burned by electricity. Manuel Salazar was hurt about 11 a.m. Tuesday after the crane he was standing near hit a 115,000-volt line at the construction site of a backup dam at Lake Murray. Another worker had first-degree burns on his hand after trying to help Salazar, officials said. The state Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating, said Jim Knight, spokesman for Labor, Licensing and Regulation. The state OSHA department is part of LLR. OSHA, which is not required to investigate when only one person is hurt, stepped in because of the seriousness of Salazar’s condition, Knight said. Salazar was flown to the burn unit at Doctor’s Hospital in Augusta with second- and third-degree burns on 40 percent of his body, officials said. Salazar works for H.B. Mellott Estate Inc. of Pennsylvania, said Brian Duncan, SCE&G spokesman. The company is a subcontractor of Barnard Construction, overseeing the building of the backup dam. The $275 million construction began last month and is expected to be done in 2004. Construction resumed Wednesday after a safety meeting with work crews, SCE&G officials said.
Accident involving crane, high-voltage wire halts work at Lake Murray
By LORA HINES Staff Writer
Work at the Lake Murray dam stopped Tuesday when a construction worker suffered a severe electrical burn after a crane hit a high-voltage line. The 22-year-old worker, who was not immediately identified, was burned about 11 a.m. after the crane he was standing near hit a 115,000-volt line, officials said. The man was in critical condition Tuesday night at Doctor’s Hospital burn unit in Augusta, South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. spokesman Robin Montgomery said. Another worker suffered first-degree burns to his hands when he tried to help his burned co-worker, Lexington Emergency Medical Service supervisor Stuart Platt said. The man with the burned hands was treated at the scene. The man inside the crane was not hurt. The severely injured man, who had burns on his left chest and back, plus both arms and legs, was flown to Augusta from the dam’s Saluda River side, where he was working, Platt said. The man works for Melott, a subcontractor, Montgomery said. He didn’t immediately have information about the company. The construction crew stopped work for the rest of the day. It was unclear Tuesday night whether construction would resume today, Montgomery said. It’s not unusual for people who stand near an object that’s been energized with electricity to get burned, Assistant Lexington County Fire Chief Brian Hood said. “That’s why we tell people not to stand under a tree in a storm. Electricity is looking for the closest and best pathway to the ground.” The electricity that hit the crane probably arced and hit the man who was standing nearby, Hood said. “You have to remember that the arc is several thousands of degrees.” The man who was inside the crane probably was safest, Hood said. “If you’re in a car accident and you hit a live wire or pole, you want to stay inside the car,” he said. “People get hurt when they try to get out and put their foot on the ground.” Last month, as many as 90 people started building a backup dam at Lake Murray, Montgomery said. Construction started on opposite ends of the dam, moving toward the center. Work can occur simultaneously in two sections as long as those areas are at least 1,000 feet apart. But plans limit initial work to single sections for nearly half the wall, particularly those at the middle, where water pressure is highest. Construction is to be finished in 2004. The project will cost $275 million.
Broken crane crushes workers
From correspondents in Beijing 06mar03
EIGHT workmen were killed and four injured when part of a crane collapsed at a road construction site in eastern China, state media has reported. The men were working on a project to connect the cities of Huizhou and Hangzhou when the accident happened, the Xinhua news agency said. Twelve workers were sheltering in the work shed from the rain when the outstretched arm of a crane standing ten metres away from the shed suddenly broke off, falling on the shed roof,” it said. Seven of the workers died at the scene, while another died on his way to hospital. The other four were treated in hospital for serious injuries. An investigation has been launched into the accident.
Quezon City mayor cheats death
By M. PUNONGBAYAN TODAY Correspondent
Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. Friday cheated death when one of his aides pulled the mayor aside when a steel bar crushed into the official’s car near a construction site in Cubao. Reports from the Central Police District (CPD) said Belmonte’s Nissan Terrano, with license plate WCT 128, was hit by a corrugated steel bar that fell from a construction crane around 1:15 a.m. on E. Rodriguez Boulevard in Cubao. Belmonte and his aide, Alex Vidal, were on their way home after visiting the wake of the late mother of Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman and Acting Public Works Secretary Bayani Fernando in Marikina, when they passed by a building undergoing construction. Police said Belmonte’s car had no police escorts when they passed near the site of Metro Construction Co. when a corrugated steel bar, which was dangling from a construction crane, crashed at the left portion of the mayor’s vehicle where he was seated. Fortunately, Vidal grabbed and pulled Belmonte aside and the steel bar misse the official’s head. Vidal told Today that he was seated right next to Belmonte who was right behind the driver’s seat, when the steel bar fell on the car, which was badly damaged after the accident. “Katabi ko lang siya. Sa ulo siya tatamaan kung hindi siya nakailag ng mabilis eh,” he said. Vidal said there definitely was a lapse on the part of the construction workers who were erecting a private school in the area. He said there were no warning signs which should caution motorists nor were there enough lights to let drivers see the construction work. “Wala ngang radyo eh. Dapat may radyo sila sa taas at may radyo din sila sa baba para may magsasabi kung ano nangyayari,” he explained. Vidal said the workers were transporting the steel bars using a construction crane which accidentally hit an electric cable, causing steel bar to fall. “Pagbaba namin ng sasakyan kitang-kita pa namin, pati ni Mayor, na nagsi-swing pa ’yung bakal eh. Ni wala ngang nagtatrapik,” Vidal added. Vidal said Belmonte is not taking the matter personally but the mayor is more concerned about the safety measures being implemented in the construction site. Vidal said appropriate charges will be filed against the crane operator and the driver of the truck which transported the steel bars. They were identified as Senando Mateo, 36, the crane operator; truck drivers Erlito Arce, 25, and Rustico Bajan Jr., 27. All three went to the mayor’s office Friday afternoon asking the mayor’s forgiveness hoping that the charges against them would be withdrawn.
Crane Mishap + Accidents + Ramp Closure = Rough Day For I-85 Drivers; Construction Expected To Last Until 2007
February 20, 2003
DURHAM, N.C. — Some drivers had a frustrating day in the construction zone on Interstate 85 in Durham. Crews from the state Department of Transportation had to temporarily shut down the U.S. 70 ramp onto Interstate 85 South in Durham County on Thursday, forcing some cars to detour to the I-85 North ramp on Club Boulevard and then back onto I-85 South. Some drivers stuck in the detour were not happy about it. “I think it could be a hazard for the traffic because you’ve got a major interstate, and traffic is lined up pretty far back there. It could be an accident,” motorist Brenda Woodruff said. There were more driver/construction hassles in the I-85 work zone. During the morning rush, Durham police say there was a five-car pile-up at the intersection of Interstates 85 and 70. Police also say a crane knocked wires down briefly blocking the interstate. “I got to find a new route to get here,” motorist Wesley Karl said. The I-85/Highway 70 interchange is now back open to traffic, but DOT officials said construction will last until 2007.
Firefighters rescue injured construction worker
By: JUDY PACK, Citizen staff February 19, 2003
Local volunteer firefighters traded their bunker gear for ropes and pulleys Friday to rescue an injured construction worker at the bottom of a hole estimated to be 20 feet deep. “The injured man was an employee of a contractor developing some apartments at the intersection of Crenshaw and Beltway 8,” Dewey Irvin, assistant fire chief for the Pasadena Volunteer Fire Department, said. The construction crew was in the process of boring a hole under Beltway 8 when a piece of pipe being lowered into the hole struck the man in the head, leaving him trapped inside the hole. When emergency crews arrived, he was alert and conscious. “Because the man had suffered head trauma and had an injured shoulder, it was a major ordeal to send six firefighters and two emergency medical technicians into the hole to start an IV and put him on a backboard,” Irvin said. Eight more firemen were above ground at the same time, rigging up the pulleys to raise the injured man out of the hole using a stokes basket, he said. Once the rescue was completed, he was transported to the Medical Center in Houston by Life Flight. His injuries were not life-threatening, but any type of head trauma is automatically transported to one of two trauma centers in Houston. Both Ben Taub and Memorial Hermann Hospitals are equipped to treat injuries that cannot be detected by emergency personnel. “We had some heavy-duty equipment at the scene and two ambulance crews because we weren’t quite sure what we were dealing with when the first call to 9-1-1 was received,” he said.
UPDATE Concord company fined $100,000 for health and safety violation
BRAMPTON, ON, Ontario Limited, a Concord, Ont.-based contractor which specializes in assembling and erecting formwork used to build concrete walls, was fined $100,000 on February 4, 2003 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act that resulted in injuries to an employee. On September 8, 2000, a crane operator was moving formwork into place along a retaining wall when the crane’s boom collapsed and the hook block, weighing about 272 kilograms (600 pounds), fell onto a carpenter’s head. The worker suffered serious head and other injuries. A Ministry of Labour investigation found 556347 Ontario Limited had not ensured that, before operation, the crane was in safe operating condition. The crane’s boom angle indicator, which is used to determine the angle of a lift, was not functioning properly. In addition, the wrong load-rating plate was affixed inside the crane. The crane operator knew about these deficiencies. At the time of the incident, the crane’s load was about 70 per cent over capacity. The incident occurred at a new terminal building under construction at Lester B. Pearson International Airport in Mississauga. Ontario Limited pleaded guilty to failing, as an employer, to take the reasonable precaution of ensuring that, before operation, the crane was in safe operating condition, including ensuring the boom angle indicator was functioning properly and the correct load rating plate was on the crane. This was contrary to Section 25(2)(h) of the act. The fine was levied by Justice of the Peace Darlene Florence of the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton. Previously, on August 6, 2002, the crane operator pleaded guilty to failing, as a worker, to ensure the crane wasn’t subjected to a load in excess of its load-bearing capacity. This was contrary to Section 151(1) of the Regulations for Construction Projects and Section 28(1)(a) of the act. The worker was fined $9,000 by Justice of the Peace Laurie Pallett of the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton. In addition to the fines, the court imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act.
Crane falls on tugboat
16feb03
TWO people are dead and five others missing after a crane onboard a barge broke loose and crashed onto a tugboat in the waters off southern Johor state, police said today. One Malaysian and six Indonesians were missing after the incident and two of the bodies had been recovered from the water, said Dimin Awang, deputy chief of the southern region marine police. The bodies, which have yet to be identified, have been sent to a local hospital,” Dimin said. Police will continue the search operation tomorrow until all the remaining five are found, he said. Dimin said the freak accident happened yesterday when the crane was lifting a small boat into the barge when it broke loose, hitting the tugboat moored alongside the barge. “The police are investigating the accident,” he said.
Howell iron worker killed by fallen piling
By carolyn o’connell Staff Writer
LONG BRANCH — An iron worker from Howell lost his life in a construction site accident last week. Greg Larsen, 35, was pulled from a stream in Elberon on Feb. 4 after he was struck in the head by a steel piling while working on the construction of the Wood-gate bridge shortly before noon, according to Long Branch Police Department Lt. Bruce Johangten. Johangten said the crane which moved the steel piling may have malfunctioned, allowing a cable to slip and setting the piling free to fall vertically. According to witnesses who spoke with police, several co-workers who heard the piling fall scrambled to get out of the way, but Larsen was not able to get out of the way in time. “The piling was transported vertically, and when it fell, it was like a tree falling on him (Larsen), knocking him off the bridge falling 8 to 10 feet before falling into the water which is approximately waist deep,” said Johangten. The first officers to arrive at the scene were Robert Korn, Joseph Graziano and Sgt. Jason Roebuck. They found Larsen in the water being aided by co-workers who were supporting his neck until emergency medical services and the Long Branch Fire Department water rescue arrived. When the Elberon First Aid Squad responded, Johangten noted, that Larsen was still breathing but unresponsive. Larsen was transported to the Jersey Shore Medical Center Trauma Unit, Neptune, and died at about 9:35 p.m. after surgery due to blunt trauma to the head, said Johangten. According to Johangten, this is not the first tragedy to strike the Larsen family. Thor Larsen, Greg’s brother, lost his life in a similar tragedy almost two years ago in February while he was on the job as an iron worker in South Brunswick. Paul Larsen, also a brother to Greg, had been working at the Woodgate bridge construction project just two weeks ago. Johangten said the accident will be investigated by the Long Branch Police Department Detective Unit, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Adminis-tration and an independent company hired by E. Sambol Corp., Toms River.
Crane falls on Anaheim home; None are hurt, but about 400 residents lose electricity as power lines snap.
By ZAHEERA WAHID The Orange County Register
Anaheim The boom on a 65-ton crane crashed onto the roof of a house Friday when the machine tipped, taking down power lines and leaving about 400 residents without electricity, authorities said. No one was injured in the accident, which was reported at 2:20 p.m. in the 2300 block of Seville Avenue. The 185-foot crane, which had been erecting poles for the Anaheim Public Utility, tore a long, deep hole through the middle of the roof, Fire Department spokeswoman Maria Sabol said. The end of the boom landed in the back yard of a second home. All four tires supporting the crane’s deck were off the ground as the machine balanced on two extended legs and the roof of the single-story house. “It was kind of an eerie sound,” said Mike DeMore, who lives next door. “A nice crashing sound and a snapping of wires. I was on the phone at the time and the phone went dead.” No one was inside the damaged home at the time of the accident, Sabol said. DeMore was among the neighbors evacuated for several hours while the situation was assessed, and a 300-ton crane was brought in to right the smaller crane. Crews secured the tipped crane and brought it upright at 7 p.m. About 80 people remained without power Friday evening, but their electricity was expected to be restored by midnight, Sabol said. The contractor on the project, Pouk & Steinle of Riverside, sent investigators to determine the cause of the accident, Sabol said. Pouk & Steinle had hired the crane through a subcontractor, city spokesman John Nicoletti said. Pouk & Steinle moved the residents of the damaged home into a hotel, Nicoletti said.
UPDATE OSHA cites, fines S.C. contractor for crane collapses
Associated Press
COLUMBIA, S.C. – A South Carolina contractor has been cited and fined by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration for two crane collapses at the company’s Maybank Highway Bridge construction site. Republic Contracting Corp. was cited Monday and could pay $66,500 in penalties. Republic employees were constructing support columns for the new bridge near Johns Island when the first accident occurred Aug. 16. A crane collapsed while lifting a reinforced steel cage weighing about 100,000 pounds from a barge to the inside of a bridge column form. Parts of the crane fell into traffic lanes of the two-lane Stono Rover Bridge. Federal OSHA conducted the investigation because the accident occurred on a floating barge located in navigable waters. The investigation determined that the crane had not been attached to the barge; equipment required to safely lift the load was missing from the crane and the crane’s computer warning system had been by-passed. On Sept. 12, another Republic crane at the same construction site overturned, narrowly missing several yachts and injuring the operator. Federal officials found that this crane also had not been secured to the floating barge. The company has 15 days to contest the federal citations and proposed penalties before the Independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
4 workers injured when crane collapses at Pompano apartment site
By ARDY FRIEDBERG sun-sentinel.com January 29, 2003, 11:31 AM EST
POMPANO BEACH – Four people were hurt – one critically – when a crane collapsed and snapped at a construction site for the new Laguna Pointe Apartments complex, city officials said. None of the injured were immediately identified in the 7:55 a.m. Wednesday accident on the 900 block of West McNab Road just east of Interstate 95. Two of the construction workers were rushed to North Broward Medical Center, and one of those suffered from multiple fractures and other injuries. Another worker was sent to the nearby North Ridge Medical Center and another was treated at the accident scene, said city spokeswoman Sandra King. The reason for the crane collapse was not immediately known, King said. Witnesses said the crane, which had a Zeiger Crane Rental sign on its side, was lifting what are called tunnel forms to the second floor of a building under construction. The forms are used in building floors, King said. For some reason the crane collapsed dropping its load onto the construction area. The worker with the critical injuries was working on the second floor, she said. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration was notified of the accident.
No one hurt as debris rains down from condo under construction
By ARDY FRIEDBERG sun-sentinel.com
FORT LAUDERDALE — Just before 11 a.m. Tuesday, a crane dislodged a section of scaffolding on the 18th floor of a condominium under construction in the 100 block of East Las Olas Boulevard sending timbers and metal tumbling to the ground around the base of the crane. Emergency units responding to the accident said no one was hurt. The general contractor of the Riverhouse Condo Tower is Suffolk Construction of West Palm Beach. A representative of the Occupation Safety and Health Administration said an investigator was being sent to the site.
One worker seriously injured in collapse of 20-storey tower crane
By Dominique Loh
A 20-storey tower crane collapsed on Friday afternoon along Tiong Bahru Road, trapping two workers for more than one and a half hours before they were rescued by Civil Defence officers. One construction worker is believed to have suffered spinal injuries while the other may have broken his leg. Two other workers suffered only minor injuries and were seen hobbling to an ambulance at the accident scene. All four were taken to the Singapore General Hospital. Tsao San, a witness, said: “The first thing I heard was the sound, a very loud crashing sound, much louder than what is normally heard, so you know something extraordinary has happened, so I came and when I got here, everything was as it is, already the crane and the boom were twisted out of shape.” Witnesses say the workers were trying to dismantle the crane at about 4.30pm when the structure gave way, trapping the two workers within the main structure. It took about 30 minutes for Civil Defence officers to rescue the first worker, who may have suffered spinal injuries. Major Eric Yap, Commander, Ist CD Division,said: “One of the casualties sustained serious injuries, suspected spinal injuries so we had to be very careful with the rescue and we had to stabilise his condition to ensure his injuries do not get worse when we transfer him down.” After the first rescue, officers turned their attention to freeing the other trapped worker, who may have broken his right leg. It is still not known how the crane structure could have given way.
Work lift collapses Downtown, 2 injured
By Terry Horne
Two stagehands were injured this morning when a scissors lift collapsed as they were hanging banners at the Indiana Convention Center. Barney Levengood, executive director of the center and the RCA Dome, identified the stagehands as Floyd Paulsen, a fulltime employee of the convention center, and Herman Teepe, a part-time worker. Both were taken to Wishard Memorial Hospital. Levengood said he did not know the extent of their injuries. Wishard spokesman Don Payton said both men were in fair condition. Levengood said the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Division was investigating why the lift collapsed. The employees were hanging banners on the outside of the center along Maryland Street when the accident occurred about 8:30 a.m.
Crane arm crashes through dental clinic
The arm of a crane broke through a window of a dental clinic after the vehicle rolled over on a national highway in Tokyo on Saturday morning, police said. The arm of a crane leans against the wall of an office building in Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, after breaking through a window of a fourth-floor dental clinic. Nobody was injured in the accident. Police are questioning construction workers and their supervisor in a bid to determine the cause of the accident. At around 8:40 a.m., a crane lost its balance and rolled over as its driver was loading it onto a trailer parked on Route 246 in the Taishido district of Setagaya-ku, police said. The vehicle’s arm broke through a window of Hirano Clinic on the fourth floor of a nine-story office building along the highway. The crane was to leave the site after dismantling a neighboring building. The 20-meter-long arm had been folded down to 15 meters at the time. The scene is located in an area about 200 meters away from Sangen-Jaya Station on the Tokyu Denen Toshi Line. (Mainichi Shimbun, Jan. 11, 2003)
Broken piston rod blamed for High Point crane accident
The Associated Press
HIGH POINT, N.C.(AP) – A fatal crane accident occurred in September when a piston rod broke, causing the crane’s boom to move downward and hit a wall, dumping steel rafters on the victim, the state Labor Department has ruled. Juan Jose Mayo Uyoa, 30, of Randleman, was crushed to death Sept. 16 at a Samet Corp. construction site in High Point. Neither Greensboro-based Samet nor Contract Erectors, the Randleman firm operating the crane, will be cited or fined because the rod is not something that’s expected to be checked, the department said Friday. “It was not part of the maintenance routine,” said Juan Santos, a department spokesman. A broken rod is rare, he said. Contract Erector Operations Manager Mark Stinson said the rod acts similar to a breaking system on a car and prevents the boom from moving up or down when working properly. The crane boom was lifting the five tons of rafters over a wall when the accident occurred. Santos said department investigators determined the rod was either worn and had broken before or during the accident. A Contract Erectors inspector reached the same conclusion after a separate inquiry, he said. The mishap was one of two deaths at the building site within three weeks. Charles Edward Weiss, 55, of Randleman, died Oct. 2 when police said he lost his balance and fell from the roof of the building. The building for Deep River West Co. was completed in December. Information from: High Point Enterprise
UPDATE, Company fined in double death
Associated Press January 3, 2003
MERIDEN, Conn. — The federal safety regulators have proposed a $10,850 fine against a New Haven company that employed two men who were electrocuted while washing bricks on a Meriden city building. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration Thursday proposed the fine against Milestone Restoration Inc. for violations of state standards including insufficient training in the use of a boom crane. Eugenio Torres, 47, and Hector Leon, 50, both of New Haven, were killed Oct. 2 while power washing the Stoddard Municipal Building. The two men were working in the bucket of a boom crane when they came in contact with high voltage wires running from the building. Representative of Milestone will meet with OSHA next week to discuss the violations. Milestone will have the options of paying the fines, reaching a settlement with OSHA or appealing the citations in court.
UPDATE, Lakeland Agrees To Pay Widow; City worker’s estate gets largest settlement allowed without a suit.
By Rick Rousos The Ledger
LAKELAND — The city of Lakeland will pay a $200,000 settlement to the family of Marc Moore, the city utility worker electrocuted on Aug. 26, attorneys said Friday. In exchange, Moore’s family will waive its rights to sue the city. The $200,000 payment — the most lucrative allowed under Florida law without a plea to the Legislature -will come from city coffers because Lakeland is self-insured. That money does not include $100,000 already paid to Moore’s estate from the city’s workers’ compensation self-insurance fund. Four other utility workers were treated for minor injuries in the accident near Reynolds Road that killed the 31-year-old Moore, a special equipment operator. Moore was helping to install a 40foot utility pole when part of a crane hit a live wire, sending between 450 and 550 volts toward the damp ground. “This (settlement) at least puts the legal part of this tragedy behind us,” City Attorney Tim McCausland told city commissioners Friday morning during an informal meeting. Commissioners are expected to approve the settlement Monday morning, without discussion. The item has been placed along with several others on what is called the consent agenda, meaning commissioners will vote on all of them at once, without debate. The settlement will be paid in the absence of a lawsuit, which would have been filed had the settlement not been reached. The $200,000 settlement was the most Tracy Moore could be paid by the city in a lawsuit settlement because of state limits on awards, known as sovereign immunity caps. Governments in Florida can be sued, but the Legislature has put limits on the amount of money plaintiffs can collect. The only way Tracy Moore could possibly have been paid more than the $200,000 was to take the case to trial and be awarded more by a jury. However, any award in excess of $200,000 would have required petitioning the Legislature for approval. “Bottom line, the odds were very high that litigation would have resulted in no additional recovery — or $100,000 at best,” Kent Lilly, Tracy Moore’s attorney, said Friday. “Since the settlement permits retention of the workers’ compensation benefits, the total of $300,000 is a bestcase scenario from a financial standpoint. “While the money doesn’t come close to fairly and adequately compensating the Moore family for their tremendous loss, it’s the best resolution possible . . .” Lilly said McCausland and the city have acted in good faith and shown considerable decency toward Tracy Moore and her two young sons. “They could have taken a whole different approach to this, especially with the workers’ comp thing, and fought it till the cows came home — but they didn’t,” Lilly said. “We would have had an uphill battle, not because of the facts of the case, but because of the caps.” Also, soon after Moore’s death, city commissioners voted to establish a $10,000 educational trust fund for each of the Moores’ two young sons. Tracy Moore could not be reached Friday to comment. However, one of her main concerns since her husband’s death has been seeing that the safety practices of the utility and its line workers improve. An investigative report prepared by J. B. Shepherd and Associates of Windermere criticized the workers’ failure to follow established policies and procedures in the the accident. “They have assured me that they recognize internal problems, and they are correcting them,” Lilly said. “It’s important that they do better in protecting the guys that are still there.” He said Tracy Moore keeps in touch with some linemen and has so far been satisfied that positive changes are being made.
UPDATE, Feds probe worker’s death at railyard; OSHA seizes firm’s records as Railway’s safety comes under increasing scrutiny
Thursday, December 26, 2002 By MICHAEL WAGNER STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has seized safety records from the Sunnyside-based construction company whose employee was killed last week as he worked on Staten Island Railway property. Safety records for a period of a year and a half were taken from the M. Ferrante Construction Co., a subcontractor working under Granite Halmar of Ossining, N.Y. Both companies were contracted by New York City Transit to install a $100 million signal upgrade on the Railway, a four-year project that has come under fire for being too ambitious and unnecessary on a two-track, enclosed, 14-mile passenger railroad. The move indicates a possible widening of the probe. OSHA authorities were unavailable for comment due to the Christmas holiday. Mensur Capa, 41, of Willowbrook was killed Thursday when the boom lift he was operating toppled over, crushing him under its heavy arm. After the incident, the city Buildings Department issued Ferrante a violation for “unsafe construction practices.” In March, the firm was fined $46,800 by OSHA for eight previous violations. That fine was later reduced to $16,770 after a settlement was reached. Michael Ferrante, the firm’s owner, did not return phone calls for comment. The news of the seizure came as rumors began circulating that Capa was not a union member. Marissa Baldeo, a Transit spokeswoman, disputed those rumors, noting the company is a union shop. However, the agency does not require its contractors to hire only union workers, she said. “We do require them to pay the union rate, though,” she added. It is also still unclear if Capa was licensed to operate the machine. A Buildings Department spokeswoman said a permit was not required, but construction industry experts say OSHA mandates that all boom lift operators be licensed and properly trained. “There is a minimum training required, and you have to have the [certification] card in your pocket. It’s a federal law,” said R last night odney Mason, a construction safety coordinator in Ohio. “It’s not something they can supersede.” The equipment Capa was operating is called a “Pettibone” [for the company that makes it] all-terrain lift. The truck-like machine has four tractor-trailer-sized tires and a crane-like boom arm, which extends out in front of the vehicle. Capa was working on the building that once housed the Railway’s substation. The structure is being converted into a new train dispatch and control center. The project — which also includes new electrifying track switches and fiber-optic installations along the tracks — is now moving into its third year. In what Transit officials are calling an unrelated move, Michael Downer, project manager on the signal upgrade, was moved to a new project the day before Capa’s death. Criticism of the Railway’s safety record is mounting. Earlier this month, a young woman’s foot was caught in the door of a train as it left a station, dragging the 19-year-old for several feet. Railway employees have also questioned whether safety regulations are being followed by the contractors who work along the tracks. Michael Wagner covers transportation issues for the Advance.
Crane collapse kills construction worker
The chain-reaction accident stuns the crew at the site of a South Natomas business park.
By Ted Bell — Bee Staff Writer
In a dominolike chain of collapses that was over in seconds, a 44-year-old crane rigger was killed Thursday morning at a South Natomas business park site. Minutes after the tragedy in the Gateway Oaks business park off West El Camino Avenue, workers were in shock at the loss of one of their own, and stunned that only one member of the eight-man crew was struck by the huge crane boom when it toppled over. Woodland resident Mark Pease, the father of one, was a rigging foreman with Bragg Crane Service. He was standing next to a 35-foot prefabricated, concrete wall that was being moved into place by the 300-ton-capacity crane. Shortly before 10:30 a.m., the wall being moved hit another section already in place. The standing wall fell into the crane, causing more than 100 feet of the crane’s boom to collapse. For several hours after the tragedy, dazed crane and construction workers stood near the mangled heavy steel boom pieces, shattered concrete and rebar. They talked softly among themselves in small group s until making way for firefighters who would eventually use cutting tools to free the body of their co-worker from the wreckage. “It was over in not much more than 10 seconds,” said Larry Cabodi, site foreman for the Wentz Group, prime contractors for the 22,000-square-foot office building being built at 2515 Venture Oaks Way. “There was just no time to move. We are very, very lucky because no one else was killed. There were eight men there.” Ron Kimes, a manager with Bragg Crane, declined to comment on the accident other than to say the cause was under investigation. Bragg, which is based in Long Beach, is one of the largest crane operators in the state and serves many construction sites in the Sacramento area. The company’s investigation is one of the three that will be conducted. The California division of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, along with the Sacramento Police and Fire departments, also will look into the causes of the chain reaction. The prefab concrete walls are 12 inches thick and packed with rebar. They were being placed into position for what is often referred to as a “tilt-up” building. The building is being constructed in a rapidly rising area of new office buildings west of Interstate 5 and south of West El Camino Avenue. The building will house the California Correctional Peace Officers Association’s benefit trust fund and is scheduled to be completed in March. According to a Cal-OSHA report covering the period between 1997 and 1999, there were 158 crane accidents in the state. Of those, 115, or 73 percent, involved mobile cranes like the one involved in Thursday’s tragedy. Thirteen people were killed in those accidents, 12 of them non-crane operators, like Thursday’s victim. In May 2001, one worker was killed and another injured when a section of a crane being leased by Bragg rolled off a flatbed truck at the construction site of the Hyatt hotel in Huntington Beach.
Workman electrocuted
By Jerry Pratley
A 33-YEAR-OLD man died and another was seriously injured after a crane installing a light pole hit 132,000-volt powerlines yesterday. The incident was at a new housing development near Hepburn Avenue and Giralt Road in Marangaroo. The name of the man who died has not been released. The injured man was taken by ambulance to hospital. Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union State secretary Kevin Reynolds claimed workers at the site said they believed the contractor was told the lines were not live. “There is no proof of that but that is what was being said by people on site,” Mr Reynolds said. “It was around Christmas three years ago that we had exactly the same type of fatality happen when a crane hit powerlines. When is something going to be done?” Both firms involved in the work declined to comment. The firms were not working for Western Power, spokesman Peter Winner said. Power sometimes was switched off to wires when construction work was being done nearby but Western Power had not had any application in relation to the Marangaroo site. “Normally, when there is this type of work going on in the vicinity of high voltage power lines, Western Power is advised,” he said. “But there is no record of Western Power being advised. “If we are advised that work is going on, we can either turn off the line or put some protective sleeves over the line so that if something like this occurs, it is the protection rather than the wires that are hit. “We turn off wires when we can accommodate it but today it would have been difficult because the demand for electricity is so high that we needed that line.” The incident will be investigated by WorkSafe, the Office of Energy Safety and police. A review of WA Occupational Health and Safety laws by former Australian industrial relations commissioner Bob Laing that was tabled in Parliament two weeks ago recommended that negligent senior officers or company directors be held personally liable for serious injury or death on work sites. Mr Laing recommended that significantly bigger penalties, including jail terms. UnionsWA also has called for stiffer penalties, including jail.
Laborer crushed in construction accident
By: JENNIFER FRANCIS
PETERSBURG – A 23-year-old male construction worker was killed yesterday when he was crushed by a 2,000-pound concrete slab while working to demolish the old Martin Luther King Jr. Bridge. The man, whose name has not yet been released by authorities pending notification of family, was a member of a six-man demolition crew with R.R. Dawson Bridge Company LLC of Lexington, Ky., which was hired by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles to work the bridge project. Sgt. John Cannady, Sunday’s daylight shift commander for the Petersburg Bureau of Police, said officials received a 911 call of a man injured by heavy equipment on the construction site around 11 a.m. When officers and emergency workers arrived, Cannady said, they found the victim on the ground and being given first aid by co-workers. He was pronounced dead at the scene. According to Cannady, the crew was working to move large slabs of concrete from the river to a pile on the shore where they had been demolishing the old bridge when the victim walked into the blind spot of the crane operator. The operator was in the process of releasing a slab of concrete from the crane’s arm when he realized his co-worker was standing in the direct path of the debris. “By the time he realized the victim was standing there he had already let it go and it was too late to stop it,” Cannady said. Officials estimated that the concrete slab which hit the man measured nearly the length of an automobile and weighed between 2,000 and 3,000 pounds. The crane operator immediately removed the slab from atop the victim and began efforts to revive him. Authorities said the worker operating the crane was one of the victim’s family members, but were unable to release how the two were related. No criminal charges are expected in the incident. Officials with U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have been contacted and are investigating the death. The man’s body has been sent to the state Medical Examiner’s Office in Richmond for an autopsy. The results of the autopsy have not yet been returned to police. Sunday’s incident was the first fatality or major accident at the Martin Luther King Bridge site since construction work first began on the new bridge two years ago. Demolition of the old bridge, which crosses the Appomattox River and connects downtown Petersburg to the Boulevard in Colonial Heights, began earlier this year. The $25 million project will replace the old bridge which was built in 1925 with a new, four-lane bridge. Construction of the new bridge began in February 2001. Earlier this year, traffic was shifted to the new bridge so that demolition could begin on the old structure. The project is not expected to be completed until sometime next year.
UPDATE, Rail car maker fined after accident
Broadcast News Friday, November 29, 2002
TRENTON — A Nova Scotia rail car maker has been fined after an employee was crushed in a workplace accident earlier this year. Trenton works must pay $27,500 after pleading guilty to one count under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The company admitted it failed to ensure a signaler was present to ensure the safe movement of a 50 ton overhead traveling crane. Last January, Kendrick Fraser, who was 11 months shy of retirement, was closing roof vents on the crane while a co-worker was operating the machinery. Something got caught and Fraser’s upper body was pulled one way while his lower body went with the crane. He’s now confined to a wheelchair, and may not walk again.
Trapped worker injured; now in critical condition
A man was critically injured this morning after he became pinched by a crane near the ceiling of a Wichita manufacturing plant, officials said. The man freed himself and was sitting on a catwalk when rescuers found him, said fire Battalion Chief Dan McClure. A Fire Department heavy-rescue crew had to use ropes and a stretcher to lower the man about 20 feet, McClure said. The man appeared to have suffered a possible chest injury, had difficulty breathing and was in a great deal of pain, McClure said. The accident, in the 800 block of East Harry Street, was reported about 9:30 a.m. An ambulance departed with the injured man about 10:20 a.m.
One dead in water tower accident near Dallas
Associated Press
FRISCO — One man was killed and another was critically injured today when a crane they were working on partially collapsed and they fell into an opening at the top of a 150-foot water tower, rescue officials said. The men fell 20 to 30 feet into the tower, then a portion of the broken crane fell in and hit one of the men, said Capt. Paul Siebert of the Frisco fire department. A 19-year-old employee of an independent contractor died, and a 29-year-old employee of the company was in critical condition. Names of the men and the company weren’t immediately available. It was unclear which man was hit by the portion of the crane, Siebert said. The men were extracted with another crane, then the 19-year-old was airlifted to Parkland Hospital in Dallas. The 29-year-old was taken to Parkland by ambulance. The water tower is located in a still-undeveloped area on the northern fringe of the rapidly developing suburb. Large-scale construction is visible all over Frisco, which has a population of about 50,000 and is one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States, according to the 2000 census. In addition to widespread road work and housing construction, the city is building a sprawling sports complex that includes a minor-league ballpark and the new headquarters for the National Hockey League’s Dallas Stars. Growth in Frisco and nearby Plano helped Collin County outpace Texas’ 253 other counties in the past decade, according to Census 2000 figures. Frisco grew 450 percent in the ’90s and could become home to as many as 300,000 residents by 2020, officials predict.
UPDATE, Worker’s error caused fatal fall, official says
By John Ellement, Globe Staff, 11/26/2002
A Tewskbury man killed in a fall while hanging Christmas lights on Waltham Common had failed to properly secure all stabilizing parts, a Waltham Fire Department official said yesterday. ”It was an accident, and it appears to be operator error,” Waltham Deputy Fire Chief Richard Cardillo said in a telephone interview yesterday. Dennis O’Neil, a 38-year-old father of two, was in the bucket of a cherry picker, installing Christmas lights on the Waltham Common, when he fell about 50 feet to the ground, officials said. O’Neil was working for Brite-Lite Electrical Co. of Weymouth. The company issued a press release yesterday saying it was ”saddened” by O’Neil’s death and that it was cooperating with investigators in the fatal accident. ”We are saddened by the tragic loss of our employee and friend,” the company said in its statement. ”Our thoughts and prayers are with Dennis’s family.” The company did not return a telephone call seeking comment on the preliminary finding that the accident was caused by operator error. ”We are currently working with investigators to determine the cause of this accident,” the company said in its statement. Cardillo said the truck has outriggers that are supposed to stick out 6 to 8 feet from the sides of the truck and provide stability while the cherry picker is operated. ”The outriggers were down, but not extended,” Cardillo said. Cardillo said Brite-Lite rented the truck from Colvin’s Aerial Trucks in Waltham. A Colvin company official said the firm could not comment about the accident until the investigation is complete. Cardillo and Waltham Police Detective Sergeant Timothy King said the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration will be the main investigative agency. King said the truck has been impounded for the investigation. Waltham officials could not be reached for comment. A lighting ceremony on the Common is scheduled for Friday, according to the city’s Web site.
Worker killed hanging Waltham holiday lights: Cause of early morning truck topple unknown
By Norman Miller
WALTHAM — A Tewksbury man with a 3-week-old infant and three other children died yesterday when the cherry picker he was using to put up Christmas lights on Waltham Common crashed to the ground. Dennis O’Neil, 38, was declared dead at the scene after the 7:36 a.m. accident, officials said. “He just celebrated his (fifth) wedding anniversary Friday,” said Chris Paquette, O’Neil’s brother-in-law. “He has a newborn girl. He was a very good dad.” According to Police Detective Sgt. Tim King, O’Neil was in a bucket hanging Christmas lights for Friday’s lighting celebration. When the vehicle tipped, O’Neil crashed down about 60 feet, King said. The cause of the accident is unknown, and being investigated by the police and fire departments, as well as the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, King said. WB-TV Channel 56 showed a support arm on the side of O’Neil’s cherry picker broken through a piece of plywood set on the ground to support it. The arm had sunk into the ground about two feet. It was not clear if that caused the accident or was a result of it. The accident was witnessed by several cab drivers and bus patrons at the nearby train station. “I had turned for a moment and then I heard `Oh (expletive)’ and a big crash that sounded like a car accident,” said cabbie Bill Scarlett. “I looked over and he was spread over backwards still inside the cherry picker.” Witnesses said the truck was parked sideways on a slope on the grassy common. O’Neil was near the top of a tree along Carter Street. O’Neil worked for Brite Lite Electrical of Weymouth, which the city has hired for the past several years to hang holiday lights. Representatives from the company could not be reached yesterday. Waltham Fire Chief Thomas Keough said whether the cherry picker’s stabilizers were set up properly is under investigation. “There’s only two categories (in which) something like this could happen, either equipment failure or operator error,” Keough said. “Any fatality is hard to accept, any trauma is hard to accept, especially this time year,” Keogh said, nodding toward firefighters and police. “It’s overwhelming for some of these men.” Workers spent two weeks hanging thousands of lights on the mammoth maple and oak trees behind city hall. City officials called O’Neil’s death tragic. “The prayers and thoughts of the entire Waltham community are with the family,” said Mayor David Gately. “Obviously, this is a terrible accident. We are all saddened by this accident. It’s a very difficult time for the family. It certainly does put a damper on the holiday season.” City Councilor Bob Kelly said, “It’s just a tragic accident. Obviously our thoughts are with his family right now, and I think we should take some time to be mindful of his family, rather than any plans for our celebration.” As he wiped away tears, Paquette stood on the common where his brother-in-law had been pronounced dead a few hours earlier. “He does all sorts of work,” said Paquette. “He’s very energetic.”