Request for Assistance in Preventing Electrocutions from Contact between Cranes and Power Lines

摘要

Contact between cranes and overhead power lines is a major cause of fatal occupational injuries in the United States. Based upon an analysis by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of the data from the Supplementary Data System of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were approximately 2,300 lost workday occupational injuries in the United States in 1981 which resulted from contact with electrical current by crane booms, cables, or loads. These 2,300 injuries were extremely severe, resulting in 115 fatalities and 200 permanent total disabilities. Comparable statistics obtained in studies conducted by the National Safety Council from 1964 to 1976 produced an estimated annual average of 150 fatalities resulting from such incidents. NIOSH believes that this type of event is the most common cause of fatalities associated with mobile crane operations and is responsible for approximately 1.5% of all fatal work-related injuries each year.