05.11.2009

Lucky escape

A man appears to have had a miraculous escape after falling around four metres from a van mounted aerial lift today in Worthing England.

The lift, was working on the pavement/Sidewalk in the town centre when the platform was hit by a double decker bus. The impact caused the basket to tip and dump the man to the ground.
Please register to see all images

The scene earlier today

One assumes that he was not wearing a harness or lanyard?

Local reports suggest that the man, in his 40s was putting up Christmas decorations when it occurred. He was taken by ambulance to Worthing hospital where a spokesman said that he had no obvious injuries.

Vertikal Comment

This man had a very lucky escape, it looks as though the impact was not massive and was just enough to break something on the rather dated lift. It is quite likely therefore that the whole thing occurred relatively slowly.

A little more speed or a few more centimetres and he could be in the morgue tonight rather than the hospital. If he had been wearing the right safety equipment he may have even avoided the ride in the ambulance?