Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1310334.015 - F. W. Haxel Company

Inspection Information - Office: Department Of Labor, Licensing, And Regulation Division Of Labor And Industry Maryland Occupational Safety And Health

Investigation Summary

At 3:15 p.m. on April 12, 2018, Employee #1 was working from a personal platform that was affixed to a crane to replace the wire rope on two 60 foot flagpoles. A three ton Skyhook EXD 130 mobile telescopic boom crane, serial number: 110-5607-86, was being used. The boom of the crane consisted of extension cable-driven tubes that had a maximum extension of 137 feet, which the manufacturer had installed the personnel platform. The crane operator lifted Employee #1 twice to perform the maintenance, once for each flag pole. When the work was completed on both flagpoles, the crane's boom was extended approximately 113 feet at an angle of approximately 27 degrees. The crane operator started to retract the tubes, using the load line, to bring the employee back in, when a malfunction occurred. The tubes would not retract, so the crane operator elevated the boom to an angle of approximately 75 degrees at which point, the tubes to suddenly retracted. Employee #1 remained in the basket/platform as the tubes traveled a distance of approximately 82.5 feet before coming to an abrupt stop. Employee #1 received multiple injuries as a result of the force of impact at the end of the retraction, resulting in his death.

Keywords: Crane, Crane Boom, Maintenance, Struck Against