Orion crane incident attributed to hook failure

The HLC 295000 crane on the vessel was severely damaged in the accident at Rostock, Germany.

Liebherr said, “Considering the extent of the damage, we are above all thankful that it did not cause more injuries. Our priorities currently lie in supporting the investigating authorities in order to contribute to the quickest possible understanding of the accident.

“At this stage, the responsible authorities and experts unanimously agree that a broken hook was the cause of the accident.

“The exact reason why the hook did not withstand the load are unclear at this stage of the investigations.

Liebherr said the design and manufacture of the hook was outsourced to an external supplier. “A design or production error of the Liebherr crane can therefore be excluded,” said the company.

The overload test for the HLC 295000 crane was due to test it with a load of 5,500 tonnes. Liebherr said the failure occurred at a load of around 2,600 tonnes, causing a chain reaction.

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