September 15, 2022
Iowa

Crane accident under investigation

Sep 9, 2022 | www.swiowanewssource.com

CASS COUNTY – An accident on Thursday involving a crane falling over while on a bridge northwest of Massena was still under investigation Friday, according to Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken.

The accident occurred at approximately 3 p.m. on Thursday when Cumberland Rescue, Massena Rescue and Cass EMS were called to the bridge near the intersection of 756 Street and Pella Road for a report of a crane that had fallen over, according to scanner traffic. The individual was said to be out of the crane, but did have cuts and lacerations.

Wolken said the crane was used for a Southern Hills wind farm repowering project going on in the area.

“They have certain routes they can go on,” Wolken said. “Pella Road was an approved route.”

Wolken said the bridge the crane drove onto was a concrete beam bridge, and the surface is made up of five concrete beams. Three of the beams are damaged.

He said there hadn’t been any problems with the bridge, and it had been inspected last year as part of a plan in which bridges are inspected every two years. The bridge is at least six years old which was the last time any maintenance was done on it.

He said secondary roads officials are looking at options on how to fix the bridge, but he didn’t have a timeline when it would be completed since the beams would have to be rebuilt.

“We’re going to have to scramble a little bit to find some replacement components and the supply chain could be an issue,” Wolken said.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2022/09/15/crane-accident-under-investigation/