14.08.2007

Man crushed in telescopic boom accident

A 56 year old senior bridge inspector, Dale Cleary, was crushed to death late last night in a freak accident on Brisbane’s Western Freeway.

Police reported that a group of Main Roads workers had been doing routine maintenance work on the underside of an overpass on the Western Freeway around 11pm on Monday night when one of two men in a straight boom lift was caught between the machines basket and the overpass.
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The scene of the incident after the boom had been lowered.

It is believed the dead man, received fatal crush injuries from being pressed against the overpass when the platform rose unexpectedly, his colleague was able to escape injury by crouching down into the basket.

Acting Inspector Corey Allen said the Main Roads work group was a close knit unit and had been very shaken by the experience.
Members of the police forensic crash unit and Workplace Health & Safety inspectors are investigating the incident.

The Genie S series boom is owned by Skyreach a locally based company owned by Rod Leech.

Vertikal Comment

In all likelihood the boom was being driven at height while close to the underside of the overpass. Any change in the ground at this height is magnified by the booms length and can in moment lift the platforms basket by 300 to 600 millimetres, even on what appears to be relatively smooth ground.

The situation can be exasperated if the operator is then pressed against live controls and is unable to release the dead man function.

Driving at height is perfectly safe as long as you are aware of what to expect, it is also a good idea to think about what you need to do to release the dead man before you are in a trauma situation.

While these accidents are very rare, they are also largely avoidable.