Dear Doyle,

This letter is in response to an accident that appeared on your website. Craneaccidents.com had photographs of a crane accident that occurred on 4/27/01 posted on their website. In the description of the accident the following was stated:

"It is reported the operator was pouring concrete with a two-yard bucket. He boomed down beyond safe radius and the crane began to tip. He then tried to swing away from the building and side loaded the boom and you can see the result."

This was a far from accurate statement as to the cause of the accident. The crane that was involved in this accident belonged to my client, and I performed the accident investigation on behalf of my client. For the record the Operator involved in this accident was not an employee of my client, he was provided by the rental client. The statement mentioned above is not accurate to the cause of the accident at all. The Operator was working at a safe load radius, and he was well within the capacities that are stipulated in the load charts for that crane.

The theory that the boom was side-loaded by the 2-yard concrete bucket is preposterous as well. During the course of the investigation the load being lifted was estimated high at 1500 lbs. In the load charts for the load radius the Operator was working at the net capacity was nearly doubled that amount. At the time of accident high winds were not an issue so the side loading of the boom theory is not consistent with the findings that were found during the course of the investigation.

The true cause of the accident was determined to be ground failure. This is not shown in the photographs on your web site because the photographs were taken by a bystander apparently, who was not involved in this investigation, and who got their information second hand from personnel on the project that were not aware of the facts involved in this case. The information posted on your web site reflects poorly on my client who is dedicated to crane safety on all projects on which their cranes are placed.

On behalf of my client and myself I am asking that craneaccidents.com print a retraction on their web site noting the true cause of this accident. This would be greatly appreciated. It is also suggested that in the future craneaccidents.com exercise caution in displaying theories on their web site that are not backed up with evidence, and that are given by people that are not involved in the accident investigation.

Your web site does print excellent information, and it is obvious that its founders are dedicated to strive for crane safety so accidents like this one, and others can be prevented. My client and myself could not agree with craneaccidents.com more on these points.

Your cooperation in getting the truth across for this accident would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Investigator <Real mame deleted by Peeks>

Police said Jairan suffered several broken bones when he was pinned in the cab of his vehicle by debris he was clearing from a demolition site.

Shortly after noon, police emergency service units and firefighters were called to the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center site on Commonwealth Blvd., Bellerose, where a building was being demolished to make room for three new public schools.

There they found Jairan, a grapple operator with Condor Associates, trapped under bricks and steel beams from a wall that was being removed. The grapple is a clawlike attachment on a crane that grabs and lifts debris.

"He was crushed under massive amounts of concrete and two steel I-beams," said Sgt. James Buscemi, who with about 10 other officers lifted chunks of the wall off Jairan's legs and head.

"Naturally, he was screaming for us to get him out. I told him not to worry, and that he'll get home tonight," Buscemi added.

After removing the heaviest rubble, rescuers brought in heavy-duty power saws and hydraulic spreaders to extract Jairan from the cab, which had been smashed into a cage of twisted metal.

"His legs were twisted underneath him in a space not even big enough for a child," said Emergency Service officer Michael Laxton. "We had to be very careful and precise because any wrong move could aggravate his injuries."

To make matters worse, thick mud at the construction site prevented the police and fire departments from bringing in more powerful and efficient rescue equipment, said Deputy Fire Chief Stanley Dawe.

"We didn't have much time to think about what to do about the mud," he said. "These men just got in there with their bare hands and started digging."

"The operation went well because it was a joint effort," said Emergency Service officer Stephen Bilhar.

School Construction Authority officials have stopped work at the Creedmoor site to conduct a full investigation into the accident, said spokesman Dan McCormack.