A worker was critically injured in Ghent on Wednesday afternoon when a cherry picker tipped over and fell on him near Citadelpark, prompting an investigation by the workplace safety inspectorate.
The accident happened at about 13:15 at the junction of Floraliënlaan and Filips van Marnixstraat.
The victim works for a transport company that had been delivering the cherry picker to the site. According to initial information from the labour prosecutor’s office, he was driving the machine off a lorry when it tipped over and landed on him.
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Police said the man suffered multiple fractures. Emergency services attended the scene and took him to hospital in a critical condition.
The labour prosecutor’s office said it could not yet provide further details about his identity or the full extent of his injuries.
Workplace safety inspectors were sent to the scene to establish how the cherry picker lost its stability. Investigators are examining the circumstances in which the machine was being unloaded.
The exact cause of the accident has not yet been established.
The area was sealed off for the investigation, and the junction near Citadelpark was temporarily closed to traffic. The labour prosecutor’s office is awaiting further findings from inspectors and police.
