14.06.2021

Fatal crane overturn

A self-erecting tower crane overturned at a building site in Göttingen, Germany, on Saturday afternoon, killing one man and seriously injuring another.

The crane was being used to build a small apartment block and suddenly came down. The crane, a trailer/trolley mounted model, was set up on jacks with good spreaders, but tipped/overturned from the base. The initial indications suggest overloading. One construction worker was buried under the jib and rubble, while his colleague, 40, was rushed to hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery. Accident inspectors have been on site questioning people.

The crane operator, 42, suffered from shock, and is being investigated for overloading the crane. A spokesman for the public prosecutor's office in Lower Saxony has said that the operator has been accused of negligent homicide.