13.08.2008

Crane boom collapses

The lattice boom of a crawler crane came crashing down on a barge on a bridge contract in New Bern, North Carolina on Monday. One man was injured, although not seriously.

The man was employed by contractor Balfour Beatty on the job to replace the Alfred Cunningham Bridge over the Trent River in New Bern.
The crane was reportedly rigged with a full boom (local reports say 390ft -118metres but this almost certainly not the case) which had apparently been luffed down to a 45 degree angle when witnesses report hearing the boom suspension cables snap, dropping the boom onto a barge working under the bridge.
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The crumpled boom

Three men were on the barge at the time, the impact threw two of them in to the water, one of them was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
There was a Manitowoc 4100 Series 2 and a Manitowoc 4000 crane on site late last year, but at this time we can not be certain if it was one of these that dropped its boom.
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It is possible that this is the crane, seen working on the bridge last year, that dropped its boom.