15.07.2008

Seven die as port crane collapses

Sven people were killed today at Cai Lan port in Quang Ninh province, Vietnam, when a large container gantry crane collapsed while it was being erected.
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The buckled crawler crane boom and container crane wreckage

Two workers were killed instantly, while five out of six who were seriously injured and died shortly afterwards. The dead have been named as:Pham Dinh Tuyen, Pham Dinh Thuy, Do Van Luan, Dinh Xuan Huong, Le Van Tien, Phan Van Ngan and Hoang Van Tuan.

All seven, plus the injured survivor, Mai Ngoc Thanh, were employed by Lilama Corporation's Lilama 692 Company and were contracted to the Falcon Company/Vietnam National Shipping Lines which had been contracted by the port to bring the cranes from China to Vietnam,

Two 130 tonne crawler cranes were reported to have been erecting the crane when the boom of one of them buckled.

The collapsed crane was one of two bought from China to replace two similar gantry cranes that had been wrecked by severe winds in 2006. The failed crane has been working in China’s Sekou Port since 1992 and was sold to the Vietnam port for $2 million.

Officials are reported to be investigating the cause of the collapse, first indictations are that an error was made in the sequence of erection.