Safety

The crane driver involved in the ‘run-away’ crane that killed a farmer has been acquitted by a jury of any blame. Allan Woodrow was acquitted in under an hour at Bradford Crown Court of causing the death of Colin Chew by dangerous driving on March 26, 2009, and an alternative charge of causing his death by careless or inconsiderate driving.

The case of a tractor driver killed by a run-away crane last March has begun. The jury heard yesterday how the driver of a mobile crane had used his brakes for “too long and too much” as he came down a steep hill at East Morton, near Bingley.

We have been alerted to a tragic crane accident on a wind farm in South America, almost certainly in Brazil. The accident, which we have been told occurred last wednesday, involves a 1,200 tonne Liebherr LTM11200-9.1. which was lifting a full blade and rotor assembly into place when – we are told – a strong gust took the load out to the side, creating a massive side load on the crane’s boom.

Using its Liebherr LTM 1160-5.1 all-terrain crane, Southern Crane, Columbia, S.C., was hired to help South Carolina’s Capitol building twice. The first instance was to repair the 186-foot flag pole…

New York City’s department of buildings has released a new report by consulting engineers Ove Arup on the tower crane collapse last March that killed seven people. The new report lays the blame squarely on improper use of slings, and also addresses the question of whether the friction base used at the foot of the crane may have contributed to the accident.

The tower crane erector/rigging contractor who was responsible for the crane that collapsed and killed seven people in Manhattan, had his license revoked today by New York’s Department of Buildings.

Predictive Solutions, Pittsburgh, Pa., announced that its customer, Turner Construction Co., was recognized by the Associated General Contractors of America as one of the safest construction companies in the United States with a 2011 Construction Safety and Excellence Award (CSEA).

A 60 tonne mobile crane overturned while lifting a large sign at a station in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Saturday.

While the incident closed the station for several hours while the crane was recovered and damage repaired, no one was injured.

A lattice crane boom came down across two or three parked cars in Fayetteville, North Carolina yesterday. The 110 ton crawler crane, owned by Buckner Heavylift Cranes of Graham, North Carolina, was rented to LeChase Construction Services and was working on the town’s multi storey car park, lifting steel beams, when the accident occurred.

A lattice crane boom came crashing down across a busy road in the centre of Abu Dhabi, UAE this morning blocking traffic for several hours. Local reports say that the crane was working on a demolition site, using a demolition ball, although this has not been fully confirmed.