Thread: I think some one is going to get in trouble

Deliberate.

The ABC has the CCTV footage up of the incident.

I am reminded of an incident (from memory in Sale) about fifty years ago where a drilling rig belonging to the company I worked for had a similar problem. It was a truck mounted rig (Mayhew 200) used for shothole drilling on an IH B160 4x4. There were problems with the PTO lever, so they had got into the habit of leaving the PTO in gear.

One morning, as the driller left the Hotel in the rig to start work, a tin of grease fell against the hydraulic lever at the back of the rig, and the mast started to rise. Other members of the crew started yelling and waving - the driver waved back. As the mast, about twenty feet, came upright, it hit the power and telephone lines going into the police station. I was not there, but according to eyewitnesses who told me the story, the result was like when you poke a stick into an ants nest - a swarm of police boiled out of the station. I understand the young man had a rather bad couple of hours - he was working on the same crew as me a few months later, but did not want to talk about it. I presume it cost the company (or their insurers) a bit, but nothing like this incident will.

John

A few years ago in Brendale I was behind a truck at traffic lights. As we pulled out the back started lifting and gravel started pouring onto the road around me. I accelerated alongside and started hooting and pointing. The driver replied with much gesturing and swearing at me, until he saw what he was doing.
So it's not something new, it does happen.

Near where I live a truck was driving around with its boom crane extended and it knocked down a footbridge that crossed the highway.

They replaced the bridge eventually. The bit that gets me is at least half the people in the area refuse to use the new footbridge in case it happen again!

Have been involved in many incidents pulling powerlines down etc when I was working in heavy haulage - we even clipped a railway overpass once with the headboard of a mining dump truck - someone had lowered the overpass.

JDNSW's story reminds me of when we were bringing a rather large Excavator out of Norseman once. Had to travel straight up the main road. Pulled the powerlines out of the front of the courthouse. Court was in session, and the magistrate was not amused. Similarly, we stirred up a hornets nest, and were surrounded by police vehicles before we got outside the town boundary.

Also pulled the powerline out of the front of the police station / residence in Menzies early one morning with an excavator. A few kilometers up the road we had blue flashing lights behind us. The local copper was making his breakfast at the time and jokingly told us that his toaster disappeared through the wall of his kitchen. He had a sense of humour and took it all quite well.

On another occasion, we hooked a large overhanging tree branch with a big dump truck when coming out of the BP at Wubin. The tree branch in turn pulled the powerline and the entire front fascia panel off the roadhouse building. It turned out that the driver of another oversize load (who I met and ended up working with quite a lot some time later) was sitting on the dunny in the roadhouse at the time, pants around his ankles and the job "half done". Apparently the building shook violently - he thought it was an earthquake and departed the building rapidly, still with his trousers around his knees. He never did let me live that one down.

We never tried taking one down a tunnel though ...............

Now the government will appoint a commission of inquiry, the road authority also will perform an investigation, the insurance company will appoint an independent expert to avoid pay for the liabilities, the union will come to the defense of the driver and take the opportunity to ask for less hours, more money and a private solicitor will see if he can get something for him and a bit of left over for the driver.

Bugger! the coffee make me a bitter old man or.........

On a 30+ summer afternoon we had just finished a job in Healesville and were heading back to the depot. Driving up to a sharp corner on the main road we saw some rubbish on the side of the road and then it lead into an even thicker trail of garbage. All stewing in the heat of the day and hot road. It went on for about 200 meters where we saw this garbage truck driving along with its back open. Spilling its contents as it went along. We alerted the guy and then got out some shovels to help him get it off the road.

A real mess and not very nice on a hot day