29.08.2014
Fatal scissor lift overturn in NZ
A man has died at Lyttelton Port, Christchurch, after the scissor lift he was using overturned and landed on a tractor trailer loaded with a container.
The man, 40, was thrown from the platform when it landed on the trailer/container. Worksafe New Zealand and the local police are investigating. The lift is a large five scissor stack model, with stabilisers, we do not know if they were deployed though. The port has been criticised for its safety record with the several major incidents already this year and this being the third fatality.
Please register to see all images
The scene at the port shortly after the incident occured
Vertikal Comment
We do not know what caused this incident, but such overturns are rare and when they do occur are usually due to high side loads - including high winds - applied to the raised platform or driving the raised lift onto an excessive slope. Oddly this is a rare example of when the operator might have fared better if he had been wearing a harness and lanyard – which is not usually recommended for scissor lifts.
Just to add some detail. On the television news tonight footage showed the stabilisers deployed.The scissor appeared to be parked beside a straddle carrier and was being used on a cobbled surface. As mentioned in the article this is the third death at this port and there have also been a number of incidents that WorkSafe NZ have been advisedof concerning Port of Lytelton.
My condolences to all involved.