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Cal/OSHA: Serious Violations Contributed To Deadly Crane Crash In Winters

WINTERS (CBS13) – A Bay Area construction company faces more than $100,000 in fines after two workers fell to their death in Winters this past May.

An investigation by the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) found the company that hired those men – Disney Construction Inc. – violated safety laws, contributing to the men's deaths.

OSHA fined Disney Construction $106,110 because the employees involved had not been properly trained, and the company was using improper rigging.

Crane industry expert Tim Baliel spoke toCBS 13 over the phone.

"The crane has to have a full anti-tube lock system on them. The cranes they were using did not and cannot have them because of their age," Baliel said. "So men should never be in a man-basket on those cranes."

The company, which is based in Burlingame, was also fined for failing to survey and inspect the equipment before use.

And OSHA also found there was no qualified, trained signal person to assist with the lifting operation.

"It gets blamed on the operators all the time. But it comes down to the inspectors on those jobs that are not doing their job," Baliel said.

Baliel believes these tragic accidents will continue to happen if stricter safety standards aren't adopted and if workers lack proper training in an industry that is constantly changing.

"Fines are not the answer. Education to get people to understand; you can never be too safe," Baliel said.

According to Disney Construction company records for the past few years, there were only a few low dollar fines for various safety issues.

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