Stabilizing Site a Priority After a Crane Topples in Seattle 11/17/2006
A 220-foot crane collapsed at an office building site in downtown Bellevue, Wash., Thursday night, killing a resident in a nearby apartment building and severely damaging three surrounding structures. The crane operator was not severely injured and no other injuries were reported, but the crane’s mast was strewn across a major arterial and the condition of surrounding buildings was not yet clear.
General contractor Lease Crutcher Lewis, Seattle, was part way through with work on the 300,000-sq.-ft. garage and the crane had been mounted on a base within the garage’s footprint. “We are assessing the safety of the situation and taking steps to support the crane mast to see if it can be moved,” said Bill Lewis, president of LCL “We are cooperating fully with the owners of the surrounding properties and contractors to get work done on those buildings as quickly as possible.”