Mecca Crane Collapse
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Transcript of Mecca Crane Collapse
Mecca crane collapse
• On 11 September 2015, a crawler crane toppled over onto the Masjid al-Haram, the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. 111 people were killed and 394 injured. The city was preparing for the Hajj pilgrimage.
• The Masjid al-Haram is the largest mosque in the world and surrounds Islam's holiest place, the Kaaba, in the city of Mecca.
• Saudi authorities began a major expansion of the site last year to increase the area of the mosque by 400,000 square meters (4.3 million square feet), to allow it to accommodate up to 2.2 million people at once.
Grand Mosque
The Saudi Civil Defense authority confirmed that a crane collapsed through the ceiling of the mosque during strong winds created by a powerful storm. The collapse killed at least 111 people, injured 394 and trapped many pilgrims under the debris.
The incident reportedly occurred shortly before 5:20 p.m. on 11 Sep 2015, one of the busiest times of the week. The crane fell into the east side of the mosque, with its boom crashing through the roof.
There were strong sand storms in the region over the preceding week. There were also reports of winds of more than 40 kilometers per hour (25 mph).
Crane(LR 11350) The German-made Liebherr Group crawler crane LR
11350 which has a 2,976,000 pound maximum lifting capacity at 39 feet involved in the incident is operated by the Saudi Binladin Group, who are heading the expansion of the Grand Mosque and also responsible for a large amount of major building contracts in Saudi Arabia.
The operating instructions of the LR 11350 and the associated ‘Wind Speed Charts’ show that the crawler crane could not withstand such a high wind load and that the boom should have been lowered to the ground preventatively to avoid the tilting of the crawler crane.
Report stated that the crane's 190 meter long boom was not sufficiently secured by its operators so as to withstand the high winds present on the day of the collapse, and that use of that crane in those high speed winds was well outside the manufacturer's recommended operating parameters.
The report said strong winds combined with a violation of safety standards regarding the positioning the crane led to the tragedy.
The crane was one of a number around the Grand Mosque while construction work is carried out
It collapsed during stormy weather
Strong winds, combined with a violation of safety standards regarding
the positioning the crane, led to the tragedy which killed 118 pilgrims.
This image shows the overturned base of the crane
A crane is seen collapsed over the Grand Mosque.
A collapsed crane is seen over the Grand Mosque in Mecca
Construction cranes surround the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca
A collapsed crane and emergency services vehicles are seen near the Grand Mosque in Mecca
Emergency workers were quickly on the scene to deal with the high number of casualties
Saudi emergency teams gather at the site of accident in the Grand Mosque
• Effective Communication should have done with safety officials on the construction site with regards to crane operation and weather conditions.
• Should raise their safety standards and regulations so that this incident is never repeated.