A CONSTRUCTION worker who was crushed by a cage which fell from a crane may have failed to attach it properly, an inquest heard.

David Holloway, 35 – described as competent and careful – was on his third day in his job as a “slinger”, responsible for attaching loads to a crane, at a building site in HavenRoad, Colchester.

Mr Holloway, of Roberts Road, Colchester, had carried out two successful cage lifts on the morning of January 8 last year, attaching the crane hooks securely to metal bars.

He was in the middle of moving a third load, a rectangular cage on top of a triangular cage, when two hooks came loose and the rectangular cage fell on him.

A jury at Essex Coroner’s Court was told no one saw exactly what happened, but workers nearby heard the incident and rushed to help.

Theymoved the cage off MrHolloway and called paramedics.

However, he was pronounced dead soon after. The workmen also removed the other cage from the crane, because it posed a risk.

Because both cages had been moved, it had -proved difficult for investigators to piece together how they had been attached to the crane, the inquest heard.

This was why it remained unclear what had caused the cage to come loose and fall.

Carl Wright, a construction worker for 24 years who taught others how to correctly lift such cages, said: “Mr Holloway would have been trained to know when a load was secure and level.

“In order to attach cages to the hooks, you would have been trying to get under the larger cage and you could have got the wrong bar.”

Coroner Eleanor McGann suggested to him: “It’s possible Mr Holloway just didn’t quite put the hook in the right place. Being poor weather, there were shadows and it was dark.”

Mr Wright agreed, saying: “Yes. The cage wasn’t faulty and hadn’t collapsed. I don’t know how the hooks came off, but the cage didn’t fail.”

Health and Safety Executive inspector David King told the inquest Mr Holloway had all the necessary qualifications for his job.

He said: “From our investigations, he was a competent slinger who knewwhat he was doing.

“He was very careful and conscientious in the way heworked.”

New Zealand-born Mr Holloway’s parents, flew from their home in the country to be present at the inquest, along with his fiancee Nicky McCloy.

The couple had been due to marry on a game reserve in South Africa last November.

Mr Holloway had a promising rugby career until a serious ankle injury a few years ago curtailed it.

However, he devoted much of his spare time to coaching rugby and led training sessions with youngsters at Colchester Rugby Club. He also played drums in a rock band, called Parousia.

A Health and Safety Executive investigation into the incident is still in progress.

The inquest is expected to continue until Friday.