State Allows Local Governments To Take Charge Of Construction Crane Safety During Hurricane Dorian

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Despite the fact that Miami-Dade and Broward Counties are no longer in Hurricane Dorian's forecast cone, South Florida is still expected to encounter tropical storm force winds and that is a cause for concern when it comes to all of those giant construction cranes that dot the South Florida skyline during our current building boom.

To help alleviate those concerns, Florida's Emergency Management Director Jared Moskowitz temporarily waived a Florida statue that allows local governments to direct the securing of cranes and that is exactly what Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez are doing.

"The state has temporarily suspended preemption of hurricane preparation provisions for tower cranes and for hoisting equipment. A problem really pretty unique to Miami-Dade County because of all the high rise cranes that we have here," said Mayor Gimenez.

Both mayors say construction sites in their respective areas have been visited to ensure equipment and materials are secure. Tower cranes have been placed in weather vane mode to allow them to freely move with the changing of the wind. People may see the cranes spinning when winds intensify. This is the standard operating procedure for cranes in high wind events.

The County will have the power to oversee hurricane preparedness for construction cranes until September 10.

These measures were taken in the wake of Hurricane Irma in 2017 when 3 cranes collapsed at construction sites in downtown Miami.

Mayor Francis Suarez says the city is taking aggressive steps regarding crane safety. He says companies have been told that cranes must be secured before the arrival of the storm and anyone failing to do so will face hefty fines.

"We've already informed the crane operators and contractors that they have to secure their cranes," said Mayor Suarez on Friday. "We saw obviously during Hurricane Irma that we had multiple cranes that failed and were a huge danger to our residents."

In Miami-Dade, Director of Emergency Management Frank Rollason also said Friday construction cranes around the county are safe, adding, "We know they are up. They will not come down."

In Fort Lauderdale, inspectors also say they are making sure cranes are secure before the storm.

In Miami Beach, Mayor Dan Gelber says all contractors were instructed to secure their work zones including securing construction cranes.