A brand new 1,250 tonne Kobelco 16000 J-H crawler crane collapsed while undergoing final tests on July 26th 2018 at Kobelco’s plant in Takasago, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. The crane fell over at the Takasago Works manufacturing facility of Kobe Steel Ltd, killing two people, injured two others, crushed vehicles and damaged buildings.
The Kobelco 16000 J-H’s boom, jib and derrick mast collapsed sideways striking a number of buildings and vehicles in the vicinity. A man working in the immediate area, Tadashi Yamaguchi, 56, was declared dead at the scene, while Shihei Nishida, 23, succumbed to his injuries and died later in hospital. A third man, aged 59, remains seriously injured. Others working in the area or the buildings affected received minor injuries.
An operator at the site in Takasago made an emergency call to the city’s fire department around 4 p.m. on July 26, saying, “Our crane fell, and we have some injured people.”
Small-business owner Tadashi Yamaguchi, 56, and Shuhei Nishida, 23, both from Kakogawa, Hyogo Prefecture, were killed when the mobile crane fell over. Nishida, who worked for a subcontractor of Kobelco, was painting another crane when the accident occurred. He was pronounced dead just before dawn on July 27. Another worker was seriously injured while another suffered slight wounds, according to prefectural police.
The crane was built by Tokyo-based Kobelco Construction Machinery Co., an affiliate of Kobelco. It was being tested at Kobelco’s Takasago Works, the centre of the company’s iron, steel and machinery business in Takasago. Police are investigating the incident as a possible case of professional negligence resulting in death and injury.
