13.07.2014

Tower crane pad gives way

A tower crane crashed onto the roof of apartment block in Vienna on Saturday after part of the slab it was sitting on broke away.
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The cracked base caused the free standing tower to fall into the building

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The crane's counterweight crashed through the roof

The crane, a Liebherr EC-B belonging to Streif Baulojistik, was set up on a large concrete slab with cruciform base and concrete counterweights. It looks as though there was a void under one corner of the slab and when the leg standing on it took some significant weight the corner of the slab cracked and dropped into the void causing the crane to tip over onto the building.
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The corner of the concrete pad cracked

The crane’s back-mast and top counterweight crashed through the roof into the apartment below – the emergency services evacuated 18 people form the building and an adjoining block and thankfully no one was hurt in the incident.
The crane was recovered and removed by late on Saturday allowing repairs to begin.
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A photo taken the day after indicates a void under the pad