Had a real tense moment with a load swinging in the wind last Tuesday on the Seattle waterfront

I was lifting a 12-ton HVAC unit for a new building near Pier 62, and a gust came off the water that I didn't see on the forecast. The load started swinging pretty hard toward the crew's tool trailer. I had to boom down and swing the cab to counter it, which felt like forever but was maybe 30 seconds. Anyone else have a go-to move for sudden wind when you're already committed to the lift?

3 comments

3 Comments

calebw502mo ago

My old foreman always said to keep a hand on the swing brake during any lift near water. He claimed that split-second control could save a bad situation. Your boom down move sounds like it did just that.

paigem762mo ago

Nah, I gotta disagree on that one. Keeping a hand on the swing brake locks you out of the other controls you might need way faster. If you're already tipping, you need the boom and the hoist, not the swing. That foreman's tip sounds like a good way to get stuck when things go wrong fast.

margaretrivera21d ago

Paigem76 you're right that grabbing the swing brake locks out other controls, but I've seen guys get pinned against a barge because they couldn't stop the spin fast enough. @calebw50's foreman had a point about water work, that split second can mean the difference between a near miss and a swim. On dry land though, boom and hoist are definitely the priority like you said. Each situation is different, ain't no one size fits all for crane work.