Recovery of collapsed crane begins in Vancouver, work to be completed “by Labor Day” – BC
More than two weeks after flames raged at a Vancouver construction site and a crane collapsed onto 41st Avenue, work to clear the rubble is finally beginning.
The August 6 fire destroyed a six-story building in Dunbar, spread to several neighboring homes, left dozens of people homeless, and the main thoroughfare has been closed to traffic ever since.
Saul Schwebs, chief building official for the City of Vancouver, said the delay was due to the detailed planning needed to safely remove the crane and store it for investigators, as well as the time needed to acquire specialized equipment needed for the job.
On Wednesday morning, crews were hard at work cutting the crane into segments using special hydraulic shears.
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“It looks like something recovered from a mechanical crab that was defeated by Godzilla, and the operation was really quite quick,” Schwebs said.
“I’m confident it will probably only take two days. We may have to wait until Friday to do some cleanup, but the crane should be gone tomorrow.”
Once the crane is removed, Schwebs said city workers will have to repair a four-cubic-metre hole on 41st Avenue, while BC Hydro, Coast Mountain Bus Company and internet service providers will have to repair their own infrastructure in the area.
This work could take up to another week.
“We really want to have everything done by Labour Day so we can resume bus service for students returning to UBC,” he said.
The crane segments will be inspected before being transported from the site, where they will undergo further testing as part of the fire and collapse investigation.
“There is a lot of witness testimony and other evidence that we are using,” said Trevor Connelly, chief of Vancouver Fire Rescue Services.
“It has been determined that the fire was an accident, but the exact cause of the fire has not yet been determined at this time.”
Cleanup of the larger debris field could take months, but the city says Sightline Properties is committed to restarting and rebuilding the six-story building that was razed to the ground.
The city added that of the 81 people initially evacuated from their homes, only 15 remain homeless.
— with files from Andrea Macpherson
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
