Worker missing after falling from crane

MOUNT PLEASANT (AP) — Authorities planned to continue to search the waters of the Wando River for a subcontractor who fell from a crane at the Wando Port Terminal here. Juan Sanchez, 28, of Moncks Corner, fell from a boom into the river Wednesday. Crews dropped a line from the crane arm to determine where he landed. Tides and currents complicated the search, and as the day wore on, divers, helicopters and rescue boats widened the search area. A spokesman for the State Ports Authority says power to other cranes and equipment was shut down in order to prevent it from interfering with sonar being used in the search. The search was suspended about 5 p.m. and was expected to resume early Thursday. Sanchez worked for Palmetto Industrial Services, a subcontractor for Konecranes, a Finland-based crane company, Ports Authority spokesman Byron Miller said. The authority recently hired Konecranes to replace rails on the cranes' arms. Crane operators sit in small cabins that move along these rails as they pick up and lower containers from ships. Sanchez reportedly was wearing a harness when he fell. The accident is under investigation.