Crane Pain

[StoneHeartFarm]

What happens when you're changing the storage tank at a gas station and the ground lets go under your crane?

This happened about 1:00 yesterday afternoon. What you are seeing is the TRAILER on the back of a crane that slid into the hole for the storage tank. The excavator said in 27 years they'd never had an accident like this. They've had them slide into the hole nose first, but not like this. The ground under the crane let go and in she went. Spun the crane 270 degrees, (it WAS parallel with the hole). A buddy on the Fire Department told me the nose and cab of the unit was driven about 8 feet into the mud on the bottom of the hole. The boom spun around and the counter weights slid and helped drive the thing down. The driver escaped when he felt the machine start to slide, so no injuries.

To get it out, they brought in 2 even bigger machines (one nicknamed "Kranezilla"), took off the pup, hooked up a Kenworth and hoisted/pulled her out. Of course, several pieces were cut off and hoisted out separately. Most notably the stabilizers. It was dark and in the middle of a thunderstorm when they finally got it out, so I couldn't get a picture of that.

Waited as long as I could though. Really hoped to get one of lightning hitting one of those big booms that were sticking up in the air. Besides, it was a party! Whole town turned out and set up lawn chairs. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

SHF

 

[RobS]

Ouch! That makes some of my blunders look pretty minor /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[RPM]

Just think of how much fun that guy's co-workers are going to have with him when he gets back.

Ouch!

 

[StoneHeartFarm]

Here's another. The "Oversize Load" sign is on the pup (trailer) that was attached to the rear and carried counterweights. The stabilier that's sticking up is on the main unit. Brakes on the pup were locked at the time of the accident and they wound up unhooking it and moving it with another crane.

Don't know if the operator is going to get a pay check anytime soon. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif But I'm told it wasn't his fault.

SHF

 

[MarkV]

Wow, someone is going to have an expensive repair bill.

 

[Hawgee]

Reminds me of the one time I had a major dissagreement with a local inspector. I had a 100' Garland crane up and "out". He came off the street and wanted to know why I didn't have more pad under my out riggers. After an education of the loads and pill location, I told him I was legal but was more worried about what was subterrain. I did get the crane parked back in it's bay that night.
That is a hard lesson to learn. It's good no one was under the boom.

"What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered."
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

 

[StoneHeartFarm]

I understand that the people in the store think it's called a boom because that's the sound it makes when it hits. Seriously, the wife was working about 6 blocks away and said she heard a loud noise and then a bunch of sirens. People in the closest buildings are talkin about the ground shaking.

It sounds awful, but I wish I was there to see it. That's a once in a lifetime thing. Especially with no one hurt.

They had the crane out of the hole and laying busted up in the middle of the street earlier today but I didn't have my camera. Drat! /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

SHF

 

[Hawgee]

but I didn't have my camera. Drat!

I was near first on board for the Nikon 950 thru NECX. After going the Nexcell batteries and charger and up'n my old Photosle to ver 5.5, I got stuck with a glitch doing a firmware 3 upgrade. /w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif It makes ya wonder sometimes what the AP people are paid, don't it? What I got out of the digitals beyond the shear fun and dry dark room is I found out I needed to upgrade my glasses. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

"What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered."
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)