Crane Accident
Roswell, NM
February 16, 1961
Site No. 2, one of twelve Atlas missile launching pads being dug near Roswell, New Mexico, was the scene of a deadly accident on February 16, 1961. Workers removed steel outriggers from an unmanned Lorain crane positioned near the edge of a 172 feet deep silo hole. The huge crane rolled through a wooden railing, toppled over backwards, and slid over the silo's edge. It hurtled downward, brushed workmen and scaffolding off the sides of the hole, and crashed in flames at the bottom, killing a total of six people and injuring 14 others. |
