Crane Accidents
According to an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) estimate, there are 96,000 construction cranes in the United States. While much of the construction industry falls under tight regulation controlled by local, state, or federal oversight, the area of construction crane industry falls under an anomalous regulatory scheme involving various jurisdictions.
The current regulatory regime for crane safety was created by OSHA in 1971. The regulations provide requirements for the crane's maintenance, record keeping and inspections, which are required annually. However, these same regulations do not outline enforcement procedures to ensure the crane owner's compliance. At this writing, new draft regulations that would update OSHA's crane rules are proposed, but there is no firm timetable for their enactment. Construction cranes can be a towering hazard at construction sites, potentially endangering both operators and construction workers. The absence of coordinated and stringent oversight is all too tangible in the grim construction crane fatality statistics: an average of 81 crane-related deaths from 1997-2006, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). A recent Associated Press study that focused on construction crane accidents and regulation revealed some sobering insights. The study's most salient revelation was the fact that in 35 states crane operators are not required to obtain any type of license for operation.
If you or a loved one has been injured as the result of crane accident please contact Leonard Law Group at 312-226-8273.