New York – A union official said operator error isn’t what caused a crane’s 250-foot-long boom to collapse across New York’s Tappan (TAP’-uhn) Zee Bridge.
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Jeff Loughlin, business manager for International Union of Operating Engineers Local 137, told The New York Times (http://nyti.ms/2ajx4lk ) on Friday he’d spoken with the operator who claims to know what spurred the collapse. But Loughlin says he promised investigators he wouldn’t publicly reveal the cause.
Two drivers were injured after the sudden fall Tuesday snarled traffic, closed all seven lanes for hours and caused extensive damage to the 3.1 mile span between Westchester and Rockland counties.
Federal and state officials are investigating. The newspaper said authorities have reviewed the crane’s black box and interviewed the operator.
On Saturday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that all seven lanes of the bridge had opened by late afternoon after around-the-clock repairs since Thursday.
Cuomo said reopening all lanes were a priority since over 140,000 motorists use the bridge each day.