BALDWIN PARK, Fla. – Video from a Baldwin Park resident's surveillance camera shows the exact second a crane toppled over and landed on top of a two-story home in the neighborhood, practically splitting it in half.
The video, taken from a residence on the opposite side of a park, shows the crane in front of the home on Lower Park Road around 1 p.m. Tuesday.
Suddenly, the wheels of the heavy machinery lift from the ground as the crane starts to lean to the right. Construction workers can be heard yelling, followed by a loud crashing noise as the equipment lands on the home's roof, slicing the attic. All in all, the accident happened in about 10 seconds.
Ivan Fogarty, the corporate safety director for Beyel Brothers Crane & Rigging, the company that owns the equipment, said the ground the machinery was on was wet instead of compact, which is likely why the crane collapsed. The operator is a veteran in the industry and has completed training from the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators, Fogarty said.
A Baldwin Park home was split in half after a crane toppled over and sliced through the top story.
The owner of the home told News 6 that his wife and two children were not home at the time of the crash. They have since been allowed to enter the first floor to get belongings they need while the home is unlivable. He said he’s thankful no one was harmed.
Trever Switzer, the general manager for Gold Key Roofing, was at the home with a crew and engineers on Wednesday, examining the damage. He said that four of his employees were working on the back side of the home at the time of the accident and the crane was only about four feet away from hitting them.
While Switzer said the crane only went through the attic, it's still unknown is the house is salvagable.
The crane was removed from the home at about 7 p.m. Tuesday.