Three workers were killed and five other people were
injured at Miller Park yesterday when a crane "collapsed
while lifting a piece of the [ballpark's] roof into place
during high winds," according to Greg Borowski of the
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL. The accident "could delay
completion" of the $400M facility, but Brewers officials
said that they "still hope it can be ready for opening day
2000." The crane, "one of the largest in the world," was
lifting a 400-ton section of the roof into place when it
"either tipped or buckled" and collapsed. The crane's arm
"smashed through" several already-installed roof pieces and
"was left drooping over the stadium's 200-foot-tall wall."
Stadium board officials, the Brewers and MLB "expressed
their condolences to the families of the workers killed,"
and the Royals-Brewers game tonight at County Stadium has
been postponed. The accident is currently under
investigation by local and federal safety authorities, and
it "raises questions about whether the lift should have been
conducted in Wednesday's wind and whether officials went
ahead with it to keep the project on schedule" (MILWAUKEE
JOURNAL SENTINEL, 7/15). In Milwaukee, Dale Hofmann writes
that construction on the park should continue under the
header, "Miller Park Must Go On, If Only To Honor Victims"
(MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 7/15). Stadium Board Chair
Robert Trunzo, on whether the ballpark would be ready for
opening day next season: "We're not even going to speculate
on that right now. ... We're not focusing on schedule.
We're not focusing on damage. We're just focusing on the
human element" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 7/15).
