17.08.2021
Man jumps clear of boom lift
A man using a boom lift was forced to jump from the platform when the lift caught fire after contacting overhead power lines in Alabama, USA.
The man was around six metres up in a Genie Z-45 from United Rentals, when he came too close to power lines. The power arced to the boom and ran down through to the base and earth, causing a fire to break out. Unable to rescue him until the power was down, the local fire department organised a safety net and urged the man to jump clear of the machine and into the net. Eventually he did just that and suffered a leg injury, far less critical than what might have happened had he not been caught, or if he had been stuck in the platform.
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The operator prepares to jump
The incident occurred at Hooligans Harley Davidson dealership in Oxford, Alabama on Saturday afternoon.
The video below shows the rescue taking place
Vertikal Comment
Yet another case of an aerial work platform user ignoring, or simply being unaware, of proximity of overhead power lines and running into trouble. In this case our man was extremely lucky to not have been hurt when the power arced to the platform, and doubly so that he was able to jump clear. One has to wonder if he had received any training at all on the safe use of the platform.
They abound
Some Fire Department. They didn't even attempt to put the fire out and were more concerned about filming it for social media and creating a stunt that injured the ad hoc performer.