CRANE DRIVER CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28748, 20 November 1958, Page 16

CRANE DRIVER CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, November 19. The overloading of a twoton crane had caused the death of an employee of the Railways Department, said the police prosecutor (Mr K. O. Evans) in the Magistrate’s Court at Wellington today. Before the Court Milson Samuel, aged 56, a crane driver. Samuel was charged that while having under his control a two-ton mobile crane which in the absence of care could endanger life, he failed to use reasonable care to avoid such danger by overloading the lifting capacity of the crane by 1 ton 9cwt. and caused the death of Albert Allen, thereby committing manslaughter. The hearing was before Mr J. B. Thomson. S.M. Mr G. C. Kent, with him Mr R. Riest, appeared for Samuel. Mr Evans said Samuel was a crane driver employed by the Railways Department at Wellington. At 9.55 a.m. on July 28 he was driving a crane in the railway goods sheds when a lorry loaded with 1352 superficial feet of hardwood arrived at the sheds Samuel lifted the timber from the tray of the truck with the crane, and swung it toward a rail-; way waggon. The load lifted the rear of the crane from the ground and the jib crashed to the floor of the goods shed, fatally injuring a railway employee passing by. It was the responsibility of a crane driver to ascertain the approximate weight of each load and to determine whether the crane was capable of lifting it. said Mr Evans. This was stipu-

Jated in written instructions issued to the drivers. The weight of timber loads could be ascertained by means of conversion tables, but Samuel had made no effort to do this. Assessment of Load Clement Walter Free, a subforeman, said Samuel had been employed by the department for 12 years, and was one of the best crane drivers. He usually operated a 3j to 5-ton crane, but when the accident occurred was in charge of one weighing two tons. Questioned by Mr Evans, witness said a crane driver would have no difficulty in assessing the weight of a load of timber by means of a consignment note, if he used conversion tables. However, to his knowledge, a traffic code giving the weight of different types of timber was not issued to crane drivers. If a driver was doubtful about the weight, he would normally consult the sub-foreman or shed foreman. The hearing will continue tomorrow.