30.09.2006

A near miss

A Massive luffing tower crane came close to collapsing in lower Manhattan New York last night, when the climbing frame slipped and dropped a 4.5 metre section 100 metres to the street below.
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The Driver and his Passengers escaped uninjured

The tower section struck a passing taxi, but miraculously it landed on the front passenger compartment which was empty. The 51 year old driver and his passengers all escaped uninjured
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The tower section fell almost 100 metres, follow the yellow lines to the cab

The crane superstructure had been balanced with a six tonne concrete block on the hook to allow the climbing sequence to be carried out. Three men were working on the crane, one in the cab and two in the tower.
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The crane superstructure and balance weight

Somehow the 4.5 metre tower section, supposedly weighing four tonnes, that was ready to be placed into the tower, fell into the street below from a height of around 100 metres.

Reports suggest that the climbing frame hydraulics failed, so that the top of the tower dropped back onto the frame below, the shock then caused the new tower section to come off of its holding frame so that it fell to the ground below.
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The climbing frame that caused the accident

The men in the tower, who were using harnesses, were injured from falls caused by the crane dropping and the subsequent rocking back and forth. Thankfully the crane was well balanced and the tower sufficiently strong to withstand the impact. Injuries apparently included a broken rib and possibly a broken leg.
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The lower section of the climbing frame

The crane is owned by New York Crane. It moved in overnight with a large mobile crane to dismantle the tower crane, which was considered to be sufficiently unsafe to cause the surrounding apartment blocks to be evacuated.