One dead following New York tower collapse
UPDATE: December 15, 2009 - The Schuyler County Sheriff's Office has released the name of the tower erector who died when WRCE's 396-foot tower collapsed yesterday while a five-man tower crew was replacing guy wires
in the town of Dix, NY.Authorities say 46-year-old Dirk Remington of Clyde was attached to the tower while working on the guy wires at approximately 50-feet above ground level when the tower buckled and crashed to the ground. His four co-workers were not injured.
The tower crew was employed by Demand Communications Inc. of Owego.
On their web site, DCI says that all of their tower hands are certified by a leading national provider of climber training. They also state that they employ crew members that are certified in CPR and hazard communications.
DCI also conducts its own communications climbing program at a tower facility at their corporate headquarters.
The WRCE-AM tower, built in 1968, is owned by Backyard Broadcasting Elmira Licensee LLC, of Jacksonville, FL, according to FCC registration records. FCC records also indicate that at the identical latitude and longitude a 396-foot pole was constructed in 1975 and is owned by Northeastern Broadcasting, Inc. of Endicott, NY. Backyard Broadcasting is the parent company or WRCE-AM.
TIA 1019 to focus upon slippageSchuyler County Sheriff's investigator Sergeant Matt Maloney told WirelessEstimator.com that the crew was in the process of changing out a guy wire when the accident occurred, and the tower appeared to have buckled at the point where Remington was working.
It will not be known why the accident occurred until a complete investigation is performed by OSHA.
However, guy wire slippage is a too frequent industry occurence and the concern is being addressed in the new construction standard, TIA 1019, expected to be released in Q4 of 2010.
Many times during construction, guys are pulled out and temporarily connected until they can be adequately secured in their final connection devices, sometimes with unfortunate results.
Sometimes connections that can slip must be used for efficient construction methods. In the event this is the case, guidelines are provided in the Standard for the following:
-- Methods to analyze the structure for a slippage event including impact factors to apply for either continuous slippage or instantaneous release are provided;
-- In the event a structure cannot safely handle the potential of guy slippage or other unequal structure forces guidelines on how and where to provide temporary backup guys is fully covered;
-- Annex E of the Standard, entitled "Wire Rope End Connections," will provide specific data on connections typically used in our industry that have been known slip as well as non-slip type connections. Acceptable methods of end termination of connections are covered;
-- An option to the use of temporary guy lines is given by adding in a backup system if slippage, that can be detrimental to the tower, can occur during a construction procedure.
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December 14, 2009 - A tower technician died today after the tower he was tied off on collapsed in Schuyler County, NY.
Schuyler County Sheriff Bill Yessman said that there was a crew of five working on a guyed tower off County Route 16.
The sheriff's office got the call around 2:45 p.m., and at this point, details are limited.
WirelessEstimator.com will follow the tragedy of this year's fifth tower climber fatality.
One worker was tied off on the tower some distance up and the 396-foot-tall tower collapsed which resulted in a fatality at the scene, Yessman said.
The worker might have been in the process of changing out or performing maintenance on a guy wire at approximately the 60-foot level, authorities said.
Yessman says the first emergency unit responded within minutes, but there was nothing they could do. The Schuyler Hospital is less than a mile away from the broadcast tower site.
The tower was located about 100 yards off CR 16. The investigation is underway. Officials are withholding the victim's name until the family is notified.
Sheriff's investigators will return to the scene tomorrow morning along with representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The Montour Falls Fire Department, Schuyler County Volunteer Ambulance, Watkins Glen Fire Department and Schuyler County Emergency Management Office assisted at the scene.
The tower broadcasts the news/talk station WRCE-AM's 400-watt signal. According to FCC records, the structure is owned by Northeastern Broadcasting Inc. of Endicott, NY.
The details of the accident are not known, but the industry will be looking into whether ambitious project completion dates are to blame.
NATE cautions companies about unrealistic deadlinesJim Coleman, Chairman of the National Association of Tower Erectors, recently said that demands are again being made to push crews to complete work, even if the pace requires a blind eye be turned to safety.
"At some point, this mode of operation will lead to tragedy. If you are involved in this industry, you know this to be true," Coleman said.
"The holiday season and the end of the year always seem to result in the imposition of unrealistic deadlines. They pose great potential for accidents for our employees. We must be diligent in enforcing safety practices and policies."
"Please take the needed steps to ensure that each of your employees understand that their safety must come first in all aspects of their job, and advise your customers that you will not endanger your crew for any reason, including being pressured to meet unrealistic deadlines," Coleman cautioned.
This year's total of five fatalities is the lowest since 2003 when WirelessEstimator.com began monitoring deaths within the industry.
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