Pro tip: watch your tag lines when the wind picks up

I was working a job downtown Denver last Tuesday, setting steel for a new parking garage. The wind was blowing maybe 15-20 mph, nothing crazy. Suddenly I felt my load start to swing more than I was comfortable with. I realized one of my tag lines had gotten wrapped around the hoist cable during the pick. I stopped everything right there, set the load down on the nearest flat spot, and climbed up to untangle it. Took me maybe 10 minutes but it saved me from a potential disaster. The foreman came over and asked what the holdup was, I explained, and he just nodded. My guy on the ground said he didn't even notice the wrap until I pointed it out. Anyone else ever get a tag line twisted up on a windy day without realizing it right away?

2 comments

2 Comments

david8219d ago

Yeah, I've had that happen. What worked for me was giving the tag lines a quick visual check right after the hookup, especially before the load leaves the ground. It's a pain but it beats having to bring everything back down.

sage_lewis108d ago

Honestly I used to think a quick glance was enough but after having to re-rig a load twice in one day I changed my tune. That extra few seconds of really looking at the tag lines has saved me headaches more times than I can count. Do you ever do a double check after the load is just barely off the ground too?