Shipyard Worker Narrowly Escapes Injury When Dock Crane Tips Over

A 61-year-old longshoreman narrowly escaped serious injury when a  55-ton crane tipped at a Halifax, Nova Scotia Shipyard while he was using the crane to lift a forklift onto a passenger ferry.
 
The accident occurred at 9:53 a.m. Thursday, December 2, 2010. The worker had been working at the shipyard for almost 30 years. He sustained some bruises and was taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure, but was back on the job by 3 p.m.
 
There was no damage to the ferry. 
 
The Canadian Coast Guard is investigating the incident.
 
This crane accident occurred in Canada, but every day longshoremen along the Gulf Coast of the United States work with cranes, forklifts and other heavy equipment.  There is always a possibility of injury. For this reason, shipyard workers, dockworkers and longshoremen are protected under The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act.   The LHWCA provides benefits to workers who are not seamen who are injured while working on or next to navigable waters.
 
For more information about The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, read our article: “Who is covered by the LHWCA?”