Liebherr Cites Operator Error in Mecca Crane Collapse

Mon September 28, 2015
Crane Equipment Guide

An internal investigation into the crane collapse that killed over 100 people in Mecca on September 11 has found that the crane should have been lowered under the wind and temperature conditions.

In a press release sent out last week the company pointed out the operating instructions of the LR 11350 and the associated "Wind Speed Charts" show that the crawler crane could not withstand such a high wind load and that the boom should have been lowered to the ground preventatively to avoid the tilting of the crawler crane.

The company went on to say that it “has taken this very tragic accident in Mecca as reason to point out again to the operators of comparable Liebherr cranes worldwide the influences that wind has on cranes and to the unconditional compliance with the appropriate regulations mentioned in the operating instructions.”

The incident, captured on video below, saw hundreds of people injured in the collapse.