TIMBERRRRR
- Thread starter Boomslang
- Start date
classictruckman
Participating member
- Location
- Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada
She went over nice and slow, 12 seconds from tipping to touch down. Wonder how deformed seat is from being grabbed by the operators butt cheeks.
So what's the formula here crane guys?
I know nothing about cranes--obviously, from these continual posts of crane accidents, I'm not the only one.
Should the crane have been turned around the opposite direction? Closer to the work? Obviously the estimated weight was incorrect.
Pity that building was just outa reach--could have been much more exciting.
I know nothing about cranes--obviously, from these continual posts of crane accidents, I'm not the only one.
Should the crane have been turned around the opposite direction? Closer to the work? Obviously the estimated weight was incorrect.
Pity that building was just outa reach--could have been much more exciting.
classictruckman
Participating member
- Location
- Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada
Too big of piece, by that point they should have known to back off and take smaller pieces.
They were lifting over the rear of the crane which is the strongest area on that type of crane.
I'm assuming there is a reason he was setup that far away, otherwise he should have moved it closer.(you can see a bit of a hill behind the crane, they likely didn't want any landscape damage by setting up on the lawn)
They were lifting over the rear of the crane which is the strongest area on that type of crane.
I'm assuming there is a reason he was setup that far away, otherwise he should have moved it closer.(you can see a bit of a hill behind the crane, they likely didn't want any landscape damage by setting up on the lawn)
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I was just about to post that. I can't tell if that's one of Cambell's cranes or not (we use them fairly often). If not, they'll know about it and I'll try to get more info on the specific error. WYFF reports that nobody was injured. The wind was pretty stiff around here, but not that hard.
classictruckman
Participating member
- Location
- Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada
It was clearly overloaded, you can see the operator walking the piece toward the crane to try and get more lifting capacity, when he ran out of stump over she went.
sherwood7
Participating member
- Location
- Denver, co
The op must have known he was overloaded, not sure why he would not just rest it on the stump till they could come up with a better plan. Not sure if that crane has the ability to free spool, there was nothing significant under the tree that I could see. At least compared to tipping the crane over. Just guessing, I am not a crane operator.
Yep. They probably feel like they were asking a bit much at this point.
easyphloem
Branched out member
- Location
- Louisville, KY
If you have to have a crane failure on a job, this is one of the best case scenarios.
SZ
SZ
deevo
Been here a while
- Location
- Horseshoe Valley, Ontario, Canada
Wow I use a little older model of that crane on a weekly basis, I know they can lift a lot, and he even had it double blocked, wow that must of been a hell of a piece ! If that was oak that would of been up over 8 or 9 k easy, his alarm must of been going off just trying to lift that, you can hear the crane being revved up high. Don't know why they just didn't flop it, bring in the grapple truck, either way they still have a mess on their hands. Least other then the op crapping his pants no one got hurt.
It appears the climber (or entire crew) may have decided to go "just a bit bigger" than planned and ended up with a lot more weight. It's often tempting to step down a little lower and cut the clean/straight wood below a large crotch because it is:
A. ...much easier to cut vs crotch wood
B. ...simpler to rig a taller piece with more butt weight
This type of "it'll be fine" logic can easily lead to disaster, particularly around crotches, since they are so much denser/heavier than straight wood.
Obviously, the hind-sight answer is to take a smaller piece. This might require notching the sides to ensure the straps have good purchase on the piece.
Someone else mentioned dumping the piece - or the whole stem - as an option. I'd certainly repair some turf or irrigation damage rather than flip a crane.
Be safe,
Craig
A. ...much easier to cut vs crotch wood
B. ...simpler to rig a taller piece with more butt weight
This type of "it'll be fine" logic can easily lead to disaster, particularly around crotches, since they are so much denser/heavier than straight wood.
Obviously, the hind-sight answer is to take a smaller piece. This might require notching the sides to ensure the straps have good purchase on the piece.
Someone else mentioned dumping the piece - or the whole stem - as an option. I'd certainly repair some turf or irrigation damage rather than flip a crane.
Be safe,
Craig
Treezybreez
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Lancaster, SC
Quick call a tow truck before the boss arrives!
He was picking the heaviest piece of the tree. Very often in my experience on a tree of that size, (that has multiple leaders that all come together on the trunk) that is where the most weight is. That is very often heavier than the main trunk lower on the tree. He, obviously, took far too big of a pick.
classictruckman
Participating member
- Location
- Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada
This is why you try to stay to 50% of capacity, for surprises like the crotch weighing more than you think.
