Local reports say that 48-year-old rigger Anthony Esposito was working from a 6m platform, attached to a 58-story crane. The reports say he had untied his harness when the platform slipped, causing him to lose his footing. There was no safety barrier on the side of the platform, the New York Times reports, and he fell to his death.
Later reports added that Esposito’s supervisor, 56-year-old master rigger Gene J. Altobelli, had his licence suspended on Friday. Altobelli has been accused of failing to properly supervise the dismantling of the crane, after apparently telling investigators that he had been taking a break in a ground level shed when the accident happened.
