Inspection Detail

Inspection: 307200196 - Skanska Usa Civil West California District Inc

Inspection Information - Office: Monrovia District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 8:45 a.m. on November 24, 2008, Employee #1, who was employed by a construction company, was working at a site by the 60 Freeway and Turnbull Canyon Rd., in Hacienda Heights, California. As part of a construction project to widen the 60 Freeway, Employee #1 was operating a Lorain LRT-300 crane, a 30-ton capacity, rough terrain, hydraulic boom crane, to move heavy materials around the construction site. Employee #1 was operating the crane with its front facing east and both axles perpendicular to the 60 Freeway. The outriggers on the left side front and rear of the crane were extended and deployed down. The outriggers on the right side front and rear were not extended but deployed down. Employee #1 picked up a K-rail weighing 7,800 pounds and swung it clockwise, in an attempt to place it at a location northwest of the crane's position. The crane became unstable and tipped over on its side, when the load/boom was positioned southeast, the same side and position in which the two outriggers were not extended. Employee #1 was injured while jumping out of the tipping crane's cab. He was transported to Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina, California, where he was hospitalized six nights for treatment of his injuries. Employee #1's injuries included several fractured ribs, a fractured spinal column, contusions, and lacerations to his elbow and head. No other workers were injured during the incident. The Los Angeles County Fire Department reported the incident. The investigators determined that Employee #1 did not derate the crane to "on rubber tires" conditions, as required by the on board load chart whenever any outrigger was not fully extended. Employee #1 was familiar with the crane's lifting capacity ratings for extended outriggers, but did not know the lifting capacity for "on rubber tires" conditions. The crane's "on rubber tires" rated lifting capacity for a load at a radius of 39 feet was between 2,100 pounds and 2,500 pounds, depending on the type of tires used. Therefore, the crane tipped over because Employee #1 overloaded it. There was no evidence that the crane's structural parts failed.

Keywords: FRACTURE, OUTRIGGER, SPINE, OVERLOADED, CONSTRUCTION, LACERATION, RIB, CONTUSION, CRANE, OVERTURN