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Heard a safety guy say something that stuck with me

Was at a safety meeting last Tuesday and the guy said most crane accidents happen because operators get too comfortable, not because they don't know the limits. He pointed to a picture of a collapsed mobile crane where the operator had done the same lift a hundred times before. Has anyone else seen accidents come from crews that got too routine?
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3 Comments
mianelson
mianelson1mo ago
Three times I nearly backed a forklift off a loading dock because I got so used to the beep-beep-beep it just became background noise. @jessej23 is right, the brain checks out and you end up running on autopilot until something goes wrong. I guess that's why I'm banned from operating anything with a horn now.
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murphy.tessa
My buddy works on a crew that does the same bridge inspection every single month. One time they almost dropped a man basket because nobody double-checked the outriggers since they'd done that exact spot so many times. Scary how fast a routine can make you skip the little things.
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jessej23
jessej231mo agoMost Upvoted
You ever notice how the more times you do something, the less your brain actually pays attention? It's like your mind checks out because it thinks it already knows what's coming. That's probably why so many accidents happen not on the first try but on the hundredth. The real danger is that experience makes you overconfident, and overconfidence makes you forget the basics.
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