Construction workers should remember that working with and around heavy equipment puts them at risk for struck-by, caught-in, and other hazards. Crane operators require specialized training. Workers rigging the load to be moved, and those guiding or working as a spotter must also be specially trained in their specific duties and tasks. Volume 1 Issue 43 OSHA Standard 1926.1424(a) addresses Swing radius hazards where there is a chance of Striking and injuring an employee; or Pinching/crushing an employee against another part of the equipment or another object.
• Crane operators and all personnel working near or with the crane must be protected from possible overhead power lines.
• A hazard assessment must be performed and the amount of voltage of the overhead power lines must be determined before any activity with the crane.
• Barricades, safe work zones, and designated persons may have to be used to ensure the crane does not come too close to an overhead power line.
• Workers must be aware of the “swing radius” of the crane and not position themselves where the crane can cause them to be struck by or pinched between any moving or rotating areas.
• Warning signs and barricades must be placed and workers should recognize these areas. Only trained and authorized persons should be near the load. OSHA Standard 1926.1425(b) While the operator is not moving a suspended load, no employee must be within the fall zone, except for employees: hooking, unhooking or guiding a load, attaching the load to a component or structure, or operating a concrete hopper or concrete bucket. A loader crane operator died after the boom of the crane he was operating came in to contact with overhead power lines.
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