26.01.2011

Lucky escape for telehandler operator

A telehandler operator had a lucky escape this week when his machine tipped over demolishing two or three beach huts in Lyme Regis in Southern England.

The operator, Brennan Webb, 36, was working for Febrey Structures of Bristol, on the Marine Parade shelters regeneration scheme this Monday. He was unloading and placing sheets of shuttering Ply to the upper floors when the accident occurred.
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The telehander's boom came to rest on the beach

The machines boom was almost fully extended and it was working free on wheels, according to an eye witness, as soon as the telehandler began to move on what is slightly sloping ground it began to tilt and then tip.

The telehandler, a JCB, was equipped with front stabilisers and the unit was in four wheel co-ordinated steer mode and was turning at the time.
The vehicle, known as a telehandler, toppled over with its extended boom dropping over the side of the parade and smashing three private beach huts.
Webb was able to escape from the cab after it came to rest, we understand that he was shaken but not hurt.

A statement was issued by the town clerk Mike Lewis: “On the Marine Parade, Lyme Regis, at approximately midday Monday heavy plant, transferring sheets of shuttering ply to the upper level of the shelters as part of the reconstruction project, tipped over with the end of the boom and its load resting on Cart Road after having severely damaged three day huts, a street light and a small section of seafront railings. With great fortune no members of the public were injured and the driver who was unhurt was able to safely extract himself from the cab of the vehicle.”

“The area was immediately cordoned off and the police attended within minutes as did town council officers and David Gale, the council’s Client Advisor/Project Co-ordinator. Other town council employees were standing by with appropriate equipment to move additional huts and assist should it prove necessary.”

“The main contractor promptly notified the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). A team of senior executives from the company including the in-house health and safety officer and external H&S advisers attended the site within two hours, from which an incident report will be compiled, in addition to that of the HSE in due course.”

“A suitable crane was mobilised on Tuesday morning and the overturned vehicle has been righted and will be removed from site. As with all the of the dealings during the long development of this high profile project established and proper procedures will be followed in response to this most unfortunate and regrettable incident.”

Vertikal Comment

This is a classic accident and, based on local accounts, the operator unloaded a stack of sheets and then telescoped the boom to place them onto the upper floors of the structure. However he clearly felt the need to drive the machine forward with the load at height.

While telehandlers have lift and carry capacities on tyres at height it is always a precarious manoeuvre and should be avoided whenever possible. It is true that there are times when you just need to move the whole machine forward to shift the load into the building.

Ideally the lift should have been lined up square-on to the building – the load telescoped to the right height with the stabilisers extended and using the telescope boom up and down functions place the load on the upper floor.

Is this a case of a lack of training? Taking a shortcut? If the latter then as with many shortcuts it had the opposite effect. Carrying loads on long booms is always a bad idea with the odds stacked against a happy outcome.