Road and workshop
Page 48
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by Handyman
Vehicle recovery
• Last week I described the drill to follow on arriving at the scene of an accident: the need to examine the whole situation carefully with regard to vehicle, load and terrain, to discuss your intentions with the Police officer in charge, and above all not to rush or be rushed into hasty action.
You won't be thanked for making a bigger mess, such as pulling your own crane over on its side this is no joke, it can happen, especially after dark!
If the incident has landed the goods vehicle or load on private property, particularly if residential, there is another duty to perform. This is to inform the owner of the property if at all possible, that it is necessary to come into or on the property and carry out certain work to aid the removal of the upset vehicle or load.
In most instances the Police officer will take care of this duty, but never leave it undone. It may be that loose property, even a shed, must be moved—fences may have to come down. And these will suffer despite all the care in the world.
Take notes In most instances, paths, lawns and sown gardens will be damaged, bushes or trees uprooted. It pays to take a few notes of the damage caused by the accident, then on completion of the recovery make a simple inventory of any damage sustained during recovery. After the recovered equipment has been safely uplifted from the immediate vicinity, and before moving off, take a few minutes to compare notes with the owner or head of the premises wherever possible. This is both the right thing to do and saves a lot of argument and possible nonsense later, when the reckoning day arrives.
Accidents causing combined vehicle, load and property damage are costly affairs, and because it all revolves around insurance, any sense of moderation seems to disappear for a while in arranging settlement, with everyone trying to extract the most from the mishap. So a few accurate notes taken on site may well save a great deal of money later on. Accidents are not unlike weddings, funerals and parties, with no real thought given to cost at the time but a lot of long faces being pulled later, particularly when the insurance people set up next year's premiums from this year's claims experience.
Value of experience Remember, if you go into this recovery business, either as a public garage or haulage company with a heavy crane, do not rush to man the machine with anyone available. Select a man with tool and fitting experience preferably, who can assess damage, is a reasonably good writer and can make a clear drawing or sketch. This choice may take a little time to make, but the benefits are many. Tools are needed and the skill to go with them; cranes and winches are insurable; ropes, slings and cables have to be tested and certificated periodically; also all anchorage points must be kept sound and secure.
A lot of other valuable gear which will accumulate has to be cared for, such as tow bars, distance stays. D and Bow shackles, snatch blocks, sheaves, anchor spuds, cowmouth clamps for axles, jacks. sound timber, extra cable and slings, spreaders and turnbuckles, to name but a sample. Add to this the knowledge the operator must acquire in the way of safe lashing; care of dislodged loads under all weather conditions; anchorage; winching; capacity of ropes and cables; vehicle and tyre safe-loads; and the use of cutting or welding equipment—not to mention that unknown feature, the pull or lift against unknown resistance, where there is no substitute for experience.
So, before I deal with tackle, tricks and tactics on site, let's agree that our first requirement, the man-in-charge, has just got to be a skilled all-rounder....