Construction crane collapses while building a bridge (video)

In the evening of the 9th of May, a large crawler crane collapsed in Varese, Italy while lifting a large section of a new viaduct at the Arcisate Stabio railway yards. The piece of concrete bridge was never put into place, as the Vernazza-owned crane lost its stability and overturned, dumping its load on the ground. Although several people were on site watching the operation, luckily no one was injured. The crane’s operator is also safe, as he managed to get out of the cabin in time, jumping from a height of nearly three meters.

The next morning, the technicians made an inspection in order to evaluate the situation and the time it would need to remove the crane, while the outsourcing firm Salcef is investigating the causes that led to the crane’s overturn.  According to the first information though, the problem lies with the machinery, not its operation. Despite this failure, the railway owner company Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (Rfi) confirmed that there will be no slowdown in the works to complete the new railway line, which is expected to open in December 2017.

Photo source: Varese News