A piece of a crane motor fell and struck a worker in the head.

The mishap occurred when the lifting boom of the crane did not respond to the operator’s command. The loaded boom began to descend with increasing speed, slowed only slightly by the brakes. The motor fell apart and a piece of it fell, striking the worker standing nearby.

The failure was possibly because of radio frequency interference or possibly because of an earlier fire which could have affected the electronic controls.

Equipment failure and malfunction can have fatal results. Any equipment you use must be maintained and inspected regularly, with all safeguards in place.