When the remnants of Hurricane Dorian passed through Halifax, nova Scotia last September one of several cranes in the city collapsed onto adjacent buildings causing considerable damage but fortunately no injuries.
When the provincial labour ministry published its report, many hoped it would offer an explanation. However, the report by John Richardson or BMR Engineering was almost totally redacted and a number of lawsuits filed in relation to the mishap have hindered an open discussion of events and causes. To gain some insight, Saul Chernos spoke to a locally based specialist engineer about potential causes and the lessons that might be learnt.
It was late afternoon on September 7th last year when crews battened down the hatches to wait out Hurricane Dorian. With wind gusts reaching 140kph, the hurricane had moved into the tropical storm category yet was soon toppling trees and power lines and causing widespread damage. Despite measures to safeguard the stricken crane, strong winds eventually brought it down onto adjacent buildings. Thankfully, no injuries were reported and so forensics were limited to the crane and structures.
Old tower, new top
It was established that due to a previous failure in the slew ring area, the top kit of the crane had been replaced a few months prior to the incident. BMR Engineering had designed a transition section allowing the new Potain top to be fitted to the existing tower. There has been no suggestion, at least publicly, that this modification had any bearing on the collapse. Nor is it known what role the hurricane played as the crane and installation were reported to have been designed to withstand winds and gusts stronger than the storm.
A local engineering view
This story is from the April/May 2020 edition of Cranes & Access.
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This story is from the April/May 2020 edition of Cranes & Access.
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