Contractors Challenge OSHA Fines in Ohio River Bridge Construction Crane Collapse

September 20, 2016 - The companies building a bridge over the Ohio River are challenging the penalties issued last month after a February crane collapse. News reports indicate Walsh Construction Co. and Vinci Construction are facing $21,379 in OSHA fines in a case alleging managers knew a wind gauge was broken when a crane buckled in high winds at the bridge construction site. No one was injured in the incident.

 

 

The OSHA citations state an anemometer was not in use, and contractors failed to follow the crane manufacturer’s operating recommendations. OSHA found the anemometer had been broken for months. In a statement, the contractors claim wind gauges were on site and in use as required by OSHA, though they declined to say whether the crane that collapsed had a working gauge, as alleged by OSHA.