NEW BRITAIN – A construction worker jumped to safety this afternoon as he felt the aerial boomlift he was working on at the Crystal Ballroom on Farmington Avenue begin to tip over, firefighters said.
The bucket of the boomlift was hovering along the roof line of a new building designed to expand banquet hall space in the Farmington Avenue neighborhood when the worker inside felt the lift start to tip, said Deputy Fire Chief Paul Walsh.
“He unhooked his harness and jumped onto the roof,” Walsh said. “I told him to go play the lottery because this was his lucky day.”
The man was not injured. Seconds later the boom lift fell over onto nearby power lines, causing an electrical arc that flashed flames and smoke, Walsh said.
“It light up the inside of the building, that’s how they (the other construction workers) knew something was wrong,” Walsh said.
Farmington Avenue has been closed from Allen Street to Osgood Avenue since the accident happened around 12 p.m.
Power in the immediate area went out when the boom lift hit the wires, neighbors said. Eversource crews shut down power to 2,054 customers to aid emergency crews in getting the crane upright.
By 2 p.m. about 1,444 customers were still without power, said Eversource spokesman Mitch Gross. There is no estimate on when the power will be restored, Gross said.
Walsh said a crane was coming in to help pick up the boom lift that tipped over. The cleanup could take a “prolonged” period of time, Walsh said.
- Posted on Apr 21, 2016 by Lisa Backus
