

Crane falls from new Google campus building onto busy Seattle street, killing four

A construction crane fell from a building on Google's new Seattle campus during a storm that brought wind gusts, crashing down onto one of the city's busiest streets and killing four people.
Two of the dead were iron-workers who had been inside the crane while the other two were people who were inside cars, Fire Department spokesman Lance Garland said.
Four people were killed when a crane fell onto a busy Seattle street (AAP)
The crane collapsed near the often-congested intersection of Mercer and Fairview Avenue just north of downtown in the South Lake Union neighbourhood shortly before 3:30 pm, Scoggins said.
The deadly collapse is sure to bring scrutiny about the safety of the dozens of cranes that dot the city's skyscape.

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The construction equipment fell on cars but one mum and baby made a 'miracle' escape (AAP)
"It's a horrible day in Seattle when something like this happens. But it's a time when we come together because Seattle is a city that rallies around each other," she said.
Officials do not yet know the cause of the collapse. Police and the state Department of Labour and Industries were investigating, which Durkan said could take months.
"We don't know, but that's what seems to have happened here," he said.
"We are in the process of trying to get information."
Durkan confirmed that people were actively working on top of the building Saturday, but she didn't say whether the crane was being dismantled.
An observation station on nearby Lake Union showed winds kicked up with gusts of up to 23 mph at 3:28 pm, just about the time the crane fell.
Four others were injured in the accident (AAP)
"It was terrifying," witness Esther Nelson, a biotech researcher who was working in a building nearby, told the Times.
"The wind was blowing really strong," she said, and added that the crane appeared to break in half.
"Half of it was flying down sideways on the building," she said.
"The other half fell down on the street, crossing both lanes of traffic."
It's been reported that strong winds might be to blame for the collapse (AAP)
The King County Medical Examiner's Office said it would not release names of people who died until Monday.
The state Department of Labour and Industries cited two companies for workplace-safety violations after an investigation that found a flawed design for the crane's base.
"Trudi and I join all Washingtonians in extending our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the four people who died in this afternoon's tragic accident," Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement.
Google are working with authorities to find the cause of the accident on their new campus (AAP)

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