Causes of overturning of boom-type mobile cranes and their consequences

The operation of truck-mounted cranes is associated with the risk of tipping over the crane. According to statistics, 50% of incidents involving truck-mounted cranes occur due to crane tipping.

Particular complexity and greater danger are posed by work involving the lifting and moving of loads by several cranes simultaneously.

Excerpt from the Rules for Ensuring Industrial Safety of Lifting Cranes, approved by the resolution of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus dated December 22, 2021 No. 66 (hereinafter - the Rules):

330. The installation of a truck-mounted crane must be carried out on a planned and prepared site in accordance with the project of work (technological documentation), taking into account the category and nature of the soil. It is not allowed to install a lifting crane for operation on freshly filled, uncompact soil, on a concrete base whose reliability has not been verified, on the covers of manholes or communications, as well as on a site with a slope exceeding that specified in the passport.

In the current year, the State Industrial Supervision received information about four incidents related to the loss of stability and subsequent tipping over of truck-mounted cranes installed on automotive chassis.

I. On March 17, 2025, at a construction site in Grodno, a tipping over of the truck crane KS-6572SZ occurred. As a result of the tipping, the crane was damaged. There were no casualties.

 As a result of the technical investigation into the causes of the incident related to the technical condition of the truck crane, no violations of the requirements of legislative acts in the field of industrial safety were found.

The truck-mounted crane was installed on an unplanned and unprepared site without taking into account the category and nature of the soil, and sturdy and stable pads were not placed under the supports.

 The project of work did not specify the locations for the installation of lifting cranes for performing construction and installation, loading and unloading work at the site (clauses 332, 334 of the Rules).

The work was carried out in the absence of a person responsible for the safe operation of lifting cranes and riggers at the site.

II. On June 19, 2025, the State Industrial Supervision received information about a fatal accident involving a carpenter-concrete worker from SU-95 OJSC Stroytrest No. 3 of the Order of the October Revolution.

 The accident occurred at a construction site in the Slutsk district while moving a concrete bucket with a truck crane KTA-28 to a height of about 4 m for pouring concrete into the monolithic belt of the building under construction. During this operation, the truck crane with the moving bucket lost stability and tilted towards the building under construction, subsequently resting the crane's boom on the construction scaffolding.

As a result, the crane's boom fatally injured (crushed against the construction scaffolding) the carpenter-concrete worker who was at that time on the scaffolding.

It was established that there were no technical causes of the accident related to the technical condition of the lifting crane.

III. On September 11, 2025, at the site "Construction of a military town in the Gomel region. Military town Sh construction phase" during the movement of the loader bucket (weight approximately 0.9 tons), the truck crane KS-55727-A tipped over.  As a result of the tipping, the crane was damaged. There were no casualties.