Crane turned over , Operator killed. http://www.vertikal.net/en/news/story/19845/
Another sad story. Looks like in this case a seat belt would have saved him. I can't believe we keep seeing these larger cranes without mats under them. The safety policies of the company I work for states that all our larger cranes are to be on mats before the long boom goes in. Condolences to the family of the operator.
Watched a video of a news report, sounds like when she up ended a piece of counterwieght came loose, sheared the cab off taking the operator with it. Must have been a lot uglier than it sounds at first. Also from what I could see in the fuzzy pics the ground looked pretty stable, though when you tip a crane that heavy up onto the front of the tracks, it's probably going to sink in some, yeah? Really sad no matter how it happened, but let's not be in a hurry to blame either the operator or the company until the investigation is done please. Earth abides....
Seat belt was not a life saver one this one. As stated, talk is the counterweight is what got the operator. Ill save any other gory details on that other than thats a rough way to go. As for the ground conditions on site. Knowing the area, the fill is granular, and foundry bricks. The area has slag haulers, steel haulers, and 988s running around, and has for decades. I would be surprised if soft ground is the cause here. If I was a betting man, and this is all speculation as I was not there. Earlier this month some damage occurred in the area. There was roof damage, and some sort of piping damage. It is my understanding that this crew was working demolition of this area as part of the clean up effort. It was said this was the last piece. My guess is something shifted, or the piece was heavier than expected. With no way to let go of the load, and the op was stuck at that point.
Your guys are right, If a counter weight slid forward that operator never had a chance. Demolition is often more dangerous than erecting. Even a non critical load that slips or something on that order can add a lot of weight when it catches. Working over the end of the tracks you just don't have a lot of ground bearing area for support either. I'm sure we will hear more.
Crane was a 16000 Manitowoc (440 ust). A crane that big should always be on mats.