Many job-site accidents are the result of a lack of training and equipment failure. Don’t let that happen to you and your employees. Sign up for training or schedule your next inspection. But first, read on for the December 2022 accidents.
Crane crashes onto mall in Norway amid high winds; 1 dead
We are reprinting this AP News article originally published on January 6, 2023.
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — A construction crane crashed onto a shopping mall in central Norway on Friday amid strong winds, killing one person and injuring at least two others, police said.
The winds likely caused the unmanned crane, which was at least 50 meters (165 feet) high to slam onto the mall in Melhus, which is south of Trondheim, the Scandinavian country’s third-largest city, police spokesman Ebbe Kimo told the VG newspaper.
The crane collapse caused damage to the first and second floors of the shopping mall and firefighters went through the building searching for people, said police, adding they used dogs and a drone in their search.
Police later said that a person reported missing had been found dead, adding that no one else was unaccounted-for.
Norwegian media said there weren’t many shoppers in the Melhustorget mall at the time of the collapse, which occured at 9:17 a.m. (0817 GMT; 3:17 a.m. EST). Those inside the mall, including shop employees, were evacuated to the nearby city hall.
Local newspaper Trønderbladet reported that the roof inside the shopping mall had caved in. The crane was located on a building site at the mall, which was undergoing an expansion with new shops and apartments. The expanded mall was set to open in two stages in 2023, according to the facility’s website.
A second crane was on the same building site and Norwegian news agency NTB said police were looking into securing other tall machinery in the area.
Strong winds were reported over Norway on Friday, according to the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.
Workers rescued near downtown Greenville apartments after lift touches live wire, police say
This article is reprinted from WYFF News 4, published on January 19, 2023. Videos on the incident can be found on their website.
Fire crews had to rescue two people Thursday evening from a lift near an apartment complex in downtown Greenville.
According to Johnathan Bragg, with the Greenville Police Department, officers responded just before 4:30 p.m. to the District West apartments, at 101 Reedy View Drive, about a lift on fire.
The lift was on fire on the side of Westfield Street, Bragg said.
Two workers were on the lift, with the lift extended in the air, when the arm of the lift touched nearby power lines, Bragg said.
One worker jumped from the lift onto a nearby balcony, according to Bragg.
The other worker was rendered unconscious and remained on the lift, Bragg said.
Once the power was shut off, Greenville fire crews were able to remove the man from the lift and he was airlifted to the Augusta Burn Center, Bragg said.
Police did not immediately release the condition of the other worker.
Greenville Fire Marshal Tristan Johnson says the second worker was taken by ambulance to the hospital.
Johnson says the workers were doing routine work at the District West apartment complex when the construction lift him the power lines.
He says calls to 911 came in around 4 p.m. and they immediately called Duke Energy to cut off the power, so they could rescue the workers.
Johnson says crews had to break a glass window and rescue one of the workers from the inside of the building.
Pictures from the scene showed smoke around and near the apartment complex.
A witness told WYFF News 4 that she saw the bottom of the lift spontaneously catch fire, and the workers couldn’t lower it.
She said one of them tried to jump to safety, but ended up landing on the balcony railing.
A WYFF News 4 employee was in the apartment complex at the time of the incident.
She said there was no evacuation, but the roads around the complex were blocked by emergency vehicles.
Duke Energy reported more than 1,800 customers in the area were without power.
Power to the area was restored by 7 p.m., according to a Duke Energy official.
Man dies after bucket truck hits wires in Rangeley
This article is reprinted from News Center Maine posted on January 17, 2023. Follow the link for the video on this accident.
RANGELEY, Maine — A man is dead after a bucket truck hit a set of utility wires suspended across a roadway in Rangeley on Tuesday.
At 10:48 a.m., Rangeley police officers, fire crews, and NorthStar Ambulance emergency services responded to a call that a man had fallen out of a bucket truck on Main Street, according to a news release issued by the Maine Department of Public Safety.
Emergency aid was administered by paramedics, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene, the release stated.
The man’s identity will not be released until next of kin has been notified.
Maine State Police were reportedly called to assist in the investigation. Police determined the bucket lift attached to a 2012 Ford Ecoline van struck utility wires suspended across Main Street while the vehicle was traveling south.
Police believe the man who had fallen from the bucket was reportedly inside at the time of the collision.
Officials said he and the driver of the van were subcontractors for Consolidated Communications.
Route 4 was closed until roughly 4 p.m. while crews worked at the scene, police said.
Maine State Police and the Maine Department of Labor are investigating.
If you see an accident report you’d like us to feature in the blog, like the ones shown here in the January 2023 Accidents Reports, let us know. Contact [email protected] with the information.