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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
MILWAUKEE -- Insurance will cover damage from last week's fatal crane accident at the construction site of Miller Park, the Milwaukee Brewers' new baseball stadium.
The Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park District has a builder's risk property insurance program with limits of $325 million, according to a written statement released by Robert N. Trunzo, chairman of the district's board of directors.
The accident occurred in high winds when the 567-foot crane crashed to the ground while hoisting a 400-ton section of a retractable roof. Three workers were killed; five were injured.
Speculation centered on winds high as 30 mph as the cause of the accident, but investigators as of late last week had not said precisely what caused the crane, nicknamed Big Blue by the site's workers, to collapse. The crane, owned by Neil Lampson Co., had been leased to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries America Inc., the New York-based subcontractor building the stadium roof.
No lawsuits related to the accident had been filed by the end of last week.
Mr. Trunzo said in the statement that liability insurance limits total $70 million on the project. The property coverage carries a $25,000 deductible. He did not say what insurer wrote the coverages.
The property insurance covers the full cost of replacement and repair of damaged property, as well as expenses related to debris removal, expedited work to complete the project, additional construction, and fees for attorneys and consultants. The policy also covers lost income if the Brewers cannot open by April 1 of next year because of the accident.
Mr. Trunzo expressed regret over the loss of life and injuries in the statement but pledged to continue the project. "There is going to be a Miller Park," he said. "It is going to have a retractable roof, and it will be the premier ballpark in the United States."