Cut the tree into smaller pieces ha, or they could just let out more cable. That must have been one big chunk of the tree. To bad they do not show that.
Not necessarily...when the boom is fully extended and at a low angle (typical when trying to reach something behind the house) the load capacity is very low. I used to operate a Grove RT550E crane (among others) and when the boom was fully extended out and laid down to the ground (for maintenance) it could barely pick up its own main block and auxiliary line ball...and that is a 45 ton rated crane! Those pictures just give me the willys...crane operators worst nightmare!
I just would have figured that a crane operator would know this when the crane is fully extended and under estimated the weight of the tree.
They do...but some operators take pride in seeing what they can get away with...and some employers just don't want to hear it when you say "I can't safely pick that"...they will tell you to figure it out or they'll get someone who can. Another thing that factors in is the wind...a gust of wind from behind can ruin your day when loaded close to max...the rule is that wind is to be max 30MPH, (sometimes less) but that is regularly ignored. When you think about it, it makes sense...say the boom is 1' wide, and you have 100' out...that is 100 sq ft of surface area for the wind to react on...now think about carrying a sheet of plywood (32 sq ft) on a breezy day...
Similar thing happened nearby. Crane was on the road with the house down the hill below the street. They were hoisting a tree out of the backyard and the crane toppled onto the house. Not a good day for anyone involved.
The crane operators I've met and spoke with (not many) have said that there are "limiters" in place that will render the crane inoperative if cases like this tree.
Yes there are...and there are overrides for those "limiters" too...which if you have an accident like this and OSHA finds out you had the LMI (the limiter you refer to) overridden, you are in big trouble...doesn't stop people from doing it though. Fortunately the company I worked for were over the top safety nuts and would never ask or expect you to do that for them.
