The 30-story-tall crane, capable of lifting 1 million pounds, fell over at a LyondellBasell refinery in southeast Houston about 2 p.m., said Jim Roecker, the company's vice president for refining.
Three of the injured were treated and released at the scene, said Houston Fire Department Assistant Chief Omero Longoria. Two severely injured workers were taken by helicopter to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center hospital and the other two injured workers were taken to a hospital by ambulance.
The crane had not been scheduled to do any work until next week, but Roecker said its engine was idling after it hit the ground.
"This is a traumatic experience for all of us. We have to focus on the safety and health of our employees," Roecker said.
Micheal Gabriel, 22, of Spring, told reporters as he left a hospital Friday night that he was lifted off the ground by the crane's impact.
Gabriel, a contract worker, said he didn't see the crane fall. "I was in shock. I was crying. It was bad."
He told a relative that he was in a canopy tent where workers eat lunch when he heard a loud pop and people started shouting for people to run, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Near the scene of the collapse, Mattie Graham stood with her husband, Deep South worker Horace Graham.
"I'm thinking about their families. He could have been there today," she said, gesturing to her husband.
The refinery has about 3,000 LyondellBasell workers and 1,500 contract workers, Roecker said. He said all personnel at the plant were accounted for, and the plant was operating as usual.
Crane safety has been getting extra scrutiny in recent months because of an alarming number of crane-related deaths in places such as New York, Miami and Las Vegas.
In New York City, two crane accidents since March have killed nine people
- a greater number than the total deaths from cranes over the previous decade.
