CRANE CRASH TERROR
Woman crushed to death as 65ft tower topples over and smashes into flats and houses
A WOMAN died yesterday and four other people were injured when a 65ft crane toppled over and crashed into two houses.
Terrified locals felt the ground shake as the huge metal structure slammed to earth in Bow, east London, shortly after 2.40pm.
A block of under-construction flats was crushed by the tower, sending scaffolding and planks flying in all directions.
The end of the twisted jib sliced through the roof of two terraced houses. Cars parked nearby were smashed.
The woman who died was found on the first floor of one of the houses.
A neighbour, who was inside her home when the crane fell, said: ‘It sounded like an earthquake. I came out of the bathroom and if I had come out a second later, the attic door would have fallen on me.
‘If my brother or sister had been in their rooms where it hit directly, I just can’t bear to think about it – they would have been completely crushed. We’re lucky to be alive.’
Samed Ahmed, 20, who lives nearby said: ‘I saw the crane collapse and split the house apart. We started to rush out and help and someone called the police.
‘We weren’t too far off and I was worried if anything was going to collapse on us. All the residents came out and started praying and hoping that everyone was okay.’
Hassan Ali, 28, added: ‘I saw a lot of smoke from the houses and a lot of people were on their balconies running down.
‘I called the fire brigade instantly. I was in shock and my first instinct was to run there and check if everyone was okay. This whole block ran to the area and helped. By the time I got to the crane, on the bottom section one man was standing there and another was under the rubble while a third was missing.’ Nearby properties were evacuated and residents moved to a local school as the fire service began a search and rescue effort. A drone was sent up to provide the emergency crews with aerial footage of the scene.
A spokesman for the London Ambulance Service said: ‘ We treated four people at the scene. ‘We treated two of these patients for head injuries and took them to hospital and we assessed the other two patients at the scene. Sadly, despite the efforts of emergency services, a fifth person was found and died.’ The crane was being used by workmen for Swan Housing Association and NU Living. Last night a spokesman said: ‘A full incident response has been implemented and our staff are on site supporting the emergency services in their response.’ A spokesman for Wolff, the company that made the crane, said the firm had no comment to make.