Photo of a crane on the Upper East Side by Stacyinthecity on flickr
In an attempt to prevent another deadly crane accident, the city's Department of Buildings announced changes yesterday to keep construction "sites safe." The agency laid out several new regulations requiring oversight by city inspectors or a project engineer. Buildings Commissioner Patricia Lancaster said that the new rules are "something that should have been happening" before.
The engineer that applied for the crane permit will conduct a full inspection of the crane and to certify that it was assembled according to plans. The engineer also has to provide written protocol for those on site. Building inspectors are required to be on hand whenever a crane is erected, dismantled, or jumped and at safety meetings between contractors and engineers. This healthy layer of smoke and red tape is being met with skepticism in the construction industry.
Since last week's crane collapse that killed seven people, the city went on an inspection blitz that shut down three construction sites, and a buildings inspector was arrested for filing a false report. Of the 30 tower cranes (like the one that collapsed last week) around the city, the city said it has inspected 9 using 10 inspectors.
