Nicola De Marte: Builders tell court crane was working “as per normal” prior to cable being severed

Two employees of a Bunbury-based construction company have told a court there was nothing operationally wrong with the crane they were using prior to a retractor cable being severed, allegedly by a rival contractor. Further evidence was heard on Tuesday during a Bunbury Magistrate’s Court trial where Nicola De Marte was fighting a charge of criminal damage, accused of deliberately cutting a boom retractor cable on a crane that was owned by Hotweld Fabrication. It was alleged Mr De Marte visited the Harvey Beef abattoir on November 14, 2020, to help with work that was being undertaken at the site by his crane hire company Halifax Crane Hire. At the time of the alleged offending, Hotweld Fabrication was at the abattoir the day prior erecting a steel structure that would later become an extension to a chiller room. However, it was alleged that when Hotweld Fabrication returned to work the following Monday, the crane had been rendered inoperable due to the boom retractor cable being severed. In evidence, Mark Babich and then-employee Benjamin Bentley, told the court they were both on site constructing the steel structure and the crane they were using was “working as per normal” and there was nothing unusual about its operation. Although an attempted lift of a steel beam was deemed unsafe due to chains dragging along a beam that had already been installed, both Mr Babich and Mr Bentley told the court the “unsafe lift” did not cause any structural damage to the crane or the boom retractor cable. When asked if the lift would have caused vibration to the crane, both men conceded there would have been some vibration due to the friction of the chain and the steel beam but reiterated the crane and its boom would not have been damaged in the process. The court was told the damaged cable was discovered by Mr Bentley when he began a daily pre-start inspection of the crane before moving it on site after it had been moved up the main driveway of the abattoir beforehand when he noticed the retractor cable “wasn’t there”. When asked about black insulation tape that was shown to cover a section of the cable, both Mr Babich and Mr Bentley conceded they had not seen the tape before and were unfamiliar as to why it was there, telling the court it would have been flagged to them if it affected the safe operation of the crane. The court also heard evidence from Harvey Beef safety manager Lawrence Satie, who witnessed the “unsafe lift” and reported it to Perkins Builder, the primary contractor overseeing the work undertaken at the site. Mr Satie told the court that while he heard the sound of chains dragging on steel, he did not recall seeing any vibration of the crane. Mr Satie also told the court of the strict hygiene protocols in place at the abattoir, which included a rule that all employees and contractors must use the provided toilets if they needed to relieve themselves. In opening on Monday, defence counsel Anthony Eyers submitted that even though Mr De Marte approached the crane in question, he could not have been able to reach to cut the cable, instead urinating near the crane. The trial continues.