For Immediate Release:
May 2, 2018
CONTACT: dobcommunications@buildings.nyc.gov,
(212) 393-2126

DOB Revokes License of Crane Operator in 2016 Tribeca Collapse

New York, NY – NEW YORK, NY – The New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) has permanently revoked the license of crane operator Kevin J. Reilly, whose actions on February 4th and 5th, 2016 led to a fatal crane collapse on Worth Street in Tribeca. In December 2016, DOB suspended Mr. Reilly’s license to operate cranes and filed a case to revoke his license permanently. Last month, a City administrative law judge recommended that Mr. Reilly’s license be revoked. Accordingly, Buildings Commissioner Rick D. Chandler, P.E. today issued a Commissioner’s Order revoking Mr. Reilly’s Hoist Machine Operator’s license. In addition, DOB issued multiple violations to Mr. Reilly as a result of the collapse, with a total of $52,000 in fines imposed.

“Public safety requires that we hold crane operators to the highest standards. We conducted a painstaking investigation of the Tribeca collapse, both to hold accountable those responsible and to learn from this tragedy to improve crane safety. I thank the investigators from DOB, the NYC Department of Investigation, and the federal government for their work on this case, and I’m grateful to our partners in the City Council, with whom we worked on a package of legislation to strengthen the city’s crane regulations, which were already the toughest in the nation,” said Commissioner Chandler.

The administrative law judge and DOB’s investigation found that the operator failed to secure the crane the night before the accident, leading to the collapse. These and other determinations were corroborated by a separate Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation of the incident.

Following the Tribeca collapse, DOB implemented a number of new crane regulations, strengthening what were already the most stringent hoist machine regulations in the nation. These new measures include:

• Banning from city streets crawler crane configurations that must lower their booms to the ground in winds of 20 miles per hour or less, such as the one that collapsed in February 2016;

• A 25-year age limit on all cranes operating on city streets;

• Mandating a Lift Director be present when large cranes are operating – the Lift Director is responsible for overseeing safety operations during crane jobs, including ensuring pedestrians are protected and the weather forecast is continually monitored;

• Mandating an Assembly/Disassembly Director when erecting or putting away a crane in NYC;

• Mandating site-specific wind action plans for crawler and mobile cranes operating in NYC;

• Requiring anemometers for most cranes operating in NYC;

• Strict reporting requirements including daily logs for crane and derrick operations to be maintained at each jobsite;

• More stringent licensing requirements for operators of large cranes; and

• New location reporting requirements for mobile cranes.

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