When are loads allowed to be moved over personnel?

• A. Never
• B. Only with a designated exclusion zone
• C. Always if the operator approves
• D. Only during maintenance

Answer: (A)

Loads should never be moved over personnel because a lifting operation poses a serious risk of injury from a falling or swinging load. Even with a trained operator and an exclusion area, failures can occur in the rigging, crane, or anchors, and unpredictable factors like wind or dynamic forces can cause the load to strike someone. The safest practice is to route the load so its path never crosses areas where people are present, and to stop or re-route the lift if anyone is in the way. The ideas of moving over people with an exclusion zone, or based on operator approval, or only during maintenance, do not remove the fundamental danger and are not acceptable practices.