20.01.2007

Storm claims two more tower cranes

This week's hurricane-force storms brought down at least two tower cranes, killing one operator and injuring at least seven others.

In Utrecht, Holland, a 63-metre tower crane working on the town's University complex came crashing down in the winds badly damaging buildings. Six people were injured.
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The scene in Utrecht after the storm

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The falling crane caused serious damage

In Katowice, Poland, a crane, said to be 25 metres tall, was hit by exceptionally high winds causing it to "literally snap in half", according to all reports from the area.

Astonishingly the crane's operator was still in the cab when it failed causing him to lose his life. Another man was taken to hospital after being hit by the falling crane.

These two accidents, along with Monday’s accident in Liverpool and Wednesday’s accident in Bucharest, brought the tower crane failure rate this week to four. The related injuries included six fatalities plus eight people hospitalised.

In St Omer, France, scaffold on the cathedral was ripped off by the winds causing damage to the façade and breaking one of its windows.

Vertikal Comment
The number of tower accidents is a concern even if two of them may have been caused by exceptional weather conditions.

The Romanian accident which claimed four lives appears to have been due to mistakes made during dismantling. The Liverpool accident, involving a Jaso luffing jib crane owned by Falcon, may well have been weather related too.

With high winds and hurricane-type conditions becoming a more regular feature in Europe, it might be time to look at the effects on tower cranes and how to deal with them.

While a total of two or three cranes reflects an insignificant percentage of the European tower crane fleet, one wonders if other cranes might have been structurally stressed by such conditions making them vulnerable next time.