With the goal of reducing Md. construction injuries and deaths, the state has added teeth to what are already among the strictest crane regulations in the country.
New regulations went into effect for Maryland earlier this month following several serious construction crane incidents, such as a fatal Anne Arundel County accident that occurred in April 2008. According to a Baltimore news report, workers in Annapolis Towne Centre were dismantling an end section of a crane when an accident occurred, crushing a construction worker between two sections of the crane 200 feet up. Another worker was injured.
The new regulations will require all construction workers operating cranes as well as those who load and signal them to receive intensive training on the equipment, to avoid serious and possibly fatal Maryland construction accidents. Employers are now required to carry out daily inspections and to keep training records. Maryland Labor and Industry Commissioner Ronald Julius told a local news outlet that state inspectors will be checking on projects where construction cranes are in use.