Crane Safety Made a Priority in Florida's Miami-Dade County

September 12, 2007 • Discussions about crane safety continue in Miami-Dade County in hopes of making the Florida skyline safer. In mid-2006, a 20-person crane advisory panel was formed by Miami-Dade County Commissioner Audrey Edmonson in response to a fatal tower crane accident that gridlocked Miami traffic for days as authorities worried about the crane's stability. Two recent crane accidents in which a crane toppled over and landed in Biscayne Bay in May, and another crane tipover during a tropical storm in June have only intensified Commissioner Edmonson's concern over crane safety in the county.

 

Made up of dealers, rental companies, operators, developers, end users, equipment inspection companies, general contractors, and an attorney, the panel came up with local crane safety recommendations in early 2007 to propose to Miami-Dade County commissioners for approval. The proposal recommends an ordinance that will require crane operators to be certified in the county, and crane inspections will be performed by trained experts. To prevent hurricanes from knocking over cranes, the ordinance also will require companies to safely secure their cranes before the storm hits.

Edmonson's proposal was expected to go to a committee hearing on Tuesday, according to Miami's CBS4. From there, it will be up to Miami-Dade County commissioners to approve it. If it passes, Miami-Dade County would be one of the few counties in the country with these standards.