An Auburn woman has been thrown for a loop a year-and-a-half after she was the victim of a freak accident. It was October of 1997 when Laura Cuthbert's car was crushed by a 300 foot construction crane boom when the crane toppled in downtown Syracuse, New York.

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It's been more than two years since Laura Cuthbert was nearly killed in a crane accident, and she's still trying to find out what happened.

12/6/97: O.S.H.A. proposes $12,000.00 fine against Raulli & Sons of Syracuse for several procedural violations. The crane operator had also previously warned the contractor about poor support under the crane and mechanical problems with the crane. 4/7/98: The state Labor Department revoked the license of the crane operator, Thomas E. Phelps, for two years. As operator of the crane, it was Phelps responsibility to make sure the site was safe for the machine and the people around it, said Crane Examining Board Member Bernie DeJoseph.
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Editor Peeks comments: Refuse to operate under unsafe or questionable conditions or you may lose your license to operate a crane. My suggestion: Play it safe, bring the unsafe conditions to the attention of the contractor, in writing, and walk off of the job. At least you will not be involved in an accident and stand the chance of losing your license. If, after you leave, there is an accident, you will have documented proof of notice to the contractor and his would be scape goat is gone. The contractor will have to suffer the consequences, and rightfully so. In addition, if you belong to the I.U.O.E., send a copy of your documentation to the Business Manager of your local. If the local sends a replacement operator out to the project, try to get a copy of your documentation into his/her hands too.

Ideally, with good representation from your local, a replacement operator would be out of the question until the unsafe conditions are corrected.

A construction worker was killed Tuesday evening when he was crushed between a 30-ton crane he was operating and the median on eastbound Interstate 94 just west of Interstate 75 in Detroit.