Tragic Excavator Accident

[Travis_R]

... My thoughts and Prayers go out to Mr. Swanink's family and friends.

Demolition News World’s largest high reach in fatal accident…

 

[Demolitionman]

Just wanted to say thanks for the post of the news about this tragic accident

 

[BruceWard]

That is terrible. I assumed an excavator accident would be hitting someone with the boom or maybe flipping it over but I would never expect the counterweight to fall off of the back.

 

[Demolitionman]

You're absolutely right Bruce. In truth, high reach excavators have a really good safety record, but this tragic accident just re-wrote the record books.

I have found out a little more about the circumstances - I don't want this to become a way for me to direct traffic from here to my own website but, if you're interested, you can read more here: Demolition News Facts emerging from tragic high reach accident…

Thanks again for bringing this to people's attention, and thanks to the team behind Tractorbynet for giving me the opportunity to share what I know.

That is terrible. I assumed an excavator accident would be hitting someone with the boom or maybe flipping it over but I would never expect the counterweight to fall off of the back.

 

[Groo]

I just can't believe the hardware holding the counterweight would have such a low safety margin that the shock of another failure would cause it to just fall off like that!

Thats a bit like your car's bumper falling off when you hit a pot-hole.

 

[Demolitionman]

I think if your car bumper was held in place by 24 bolts and you only fastened four of them, a pot-hole might just dislodge it!!

I understand that the accident investigation team are still looking into this - I don't know what the Dutch system is like but, if it's anything like the UK, it oculd be months (or even years) before we hear the definitive findings.

 

[Groo]

I think if your car bumper was held in place by 24 bolts and you only fastened four of them, a pot-hole might just dislodge it!!

I understand that the accident investigation team are still looking into this - I don't know what the Dutch system is like but, if it's anything like the UK, it oculd be months (or even years) before we hear the definitive findings.

It wasn't the counter weight that was only held on with 4 of 24 bolts. that was something else that broke when the bucket was lifted quickly, causing the machine the get jarred. I am equating the pot-hole to the other failure. The shock of the other failure was apparently too much for the counterweight anchor system.

This should have been an expensive repair bill due to a dumb move, not a fatality. the deadly failure wasn't in a comprimised system, if I am reading it right

 

[Demolitionman]

You're absolutely right; the bolts were on the track body area. That said, there's more to this than just lifting the bucket (it doesn't have one) and the counterweight falling off.

 

[Renze]

This mr. Swanink lived in Coevorden which is about in my backyard, so to speak. I didnt hear of it untill reading it here.
About the dutch system, yes the ARBO (labour safety inspection on construction sites and industry) will shut down the entire operation to do their investigation, nobody touches anything. Any fatal accident on a job site is treated very seriously in Holland, with allmost more thoroughness than a murder investigation.

This excavator got about double the counterweight to balance this boom... was the excavator it was based on, up for this job ?

http://www.kilroynews.net/arch2011/jan2011-03.htm this is from the local emergency call website: The pictures of the broken excavator are shown halfway this page.

 

[Demolitionman]

Many thanks for that clarification. Even though the Dutch speak superb English, I have struggled to get information on the legal side of things.

As for the base machine, this modified excavator has been in existence for more than three years and although it hasn't done a huge amount of physical work, it HAS undergone extensive testing and the only previous issues that I am aware of were boom-related.