Brazil crane operator worked 18 days straight

(Andre Penner/AP)

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — A news report cites a Sao Paulo state Labor Ministry official as saying the man who operated the crane that collapsed at the city’s World Cup stadium had worked 18 days in a row.

Two construction workers were killed in the Nov. 27 accident, which remains under investigation.

G1 Internet portal quotes the ministry’s regional superintendent Luis Antonio Medeiros as saying time cards showed the crane operator at the Arena Corinthians stadium "was 18 days without any break."

Medeiros said there wasn’t necessarily a cause and effect relationship between the accident and the operator’s string of workdays. But, he added, "We think that’s exhausting for someone who works such a delicate machine."

Brazil is under pressure to finish the stadiums around the country well before the tournament begins in June.

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