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Almost tipped a 40 ton load in Galveston last Tuesday because of one stupid shortcut
Last Tuesday I was on a job site in Galveston lifting precast panels, and I almost tipped the whole rig because I skipped one step I've done a thousand times. The load chart said I was good at a 38 foot radius, but the ground guy kept waving me further out and I didn't check my boom angle before I swung. I got about 42 feet out and felt the outrigger pad on the left rear start to lift off the mat, just a hair, but I felt it in the seat. I stopped right there, set the load down, and shut it down for ten minutes while my heart slowed back down. The ground was soft from rain two days earlier, and we never put down the extra cribbing because we were trying to beat the afternoon storm. I told the super we were done swinging until the pads got re-set, and he wasn't happy but he agreed. Check your radius every single pick folks, even when you're tired and the crew is rushing you. Anybody else had a pad lift on them in soft ground, and what did you do to fix it?
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jordanc3227d ago
Man you FELT that pad lift in the seat? That is the scariest thing I have ever heard. I have seen pics of rigs going over and it happens so fast once that corner comes up. You did the right thing stopping right there and setting it down. That soft ground after rain will get you every time, those mats sink in and next thing you know you are out past your chart.
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