Faulty weld caused silo accident

LAKE ODESSA, Mich. (WOOD) - The accident that injured two men on a grain elevator -- one of whom fell 130 feet -- was caused by a faulty weld, the elevator manager told 24 Hour News 8.

The welding, he said, had been done by one of the injured men.

"In this case, it was quite evident the weld split in two," said Tim Marlin, manager of the Lake Odessa branch of the Caledonia Farmer's Elevator.

Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) officials are investigating and say it's too early to determine a cause.

The company the men worked for -- Agri Equipment Service, of Allegan -- was fined $1,850 by MIOSHA last year for two serious safety violations, both involving work platforms.

But Patty Meyer, manager of MIOSHA's Construction Safety and Health Division, said those violations were fixed and didn't appear related to the accident.

The accident, Marlin said, involved the "leg" and spout of the grain elevator.

The leg is a square tube with a conveyor belt that carries buckets of grain upward to the spout. The grain then spills down the steel spout into bins.

Jason Radke and Shawn Babbitt, of Agri Equipment Service, were trying to re-install the grain spout. Radke, 37, of Plainwell, who is one-third owner of the company, was on a platform atop the leg, 130 feet up.

Babbitt, a certified welder, had welded a small, v-shaped steel bar to the spout before it was installed.

A crane was lifting that spout, and was hooked onto that v-shaped bar, when the weld snapped, Marlin said.

The leg twisted, causing Radke to fall. Marlin said he "rode" the leg down. Police said Radke landed in a pile of rubble.

Radke, who is married and has a 4-year-old son, was in critical condition at Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids. Doctors removed his spleen and also were treating him for swelling to his head, collapsed lungs and a broken leg, said his mother-in-law, Gwen Vinson.

Babbitt, 25, of Allegan, fell about 30 feet from the top of the bin. He was in fair condition at Spectrum Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids.

Pitsch Companies was at the scene helping with the project. A spokesperson told 24 Hour News 8 the crane involved in the accident was not one of theirs. He said his crane helped in the rescue effort of the injured contractor.