Worker dies after being struck by mobile crane

In August 2021, a worker died after being struck by a mobile crane in pick-and-carry mode (lift and shift). Early investigations indicate the man was acting as a dogger and in control of a load when he was holding a tag (tether) line attached to the load that was being relocated at a workplace. It appears the worker was walking between the front of the mobile crane and the load when he was hit by the crane.

Safety issues

Being positioned between the load and a moving mobile crane is very hazardous. If the crane operator’s view is temporarily obscured, or the operator is momentarily distracted or the worker stumbles, the risk of that person being run over is high.

There have been a worrying number of mobile crane incidents involving crane rollovers, people being struck, structural failures and loads falling.

Many of these incidents have occurred due to poor planning of the lifting operation, often because basic factors have been overlooked.

The use of a mobile crane can be hazardous, particularly as the complexity of the lift increases. If the work is high-risk construction work (as defined in the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011), work method statements need to be prepared for the mobile crane operations and are important for pre-planning to help reduce the risk of an incident.