Chapter 10

“Ladle crane operators were known for their courage during what was innocently called a ‘runner’. When a ladle of molten steel was positioned over the cast iron molds, a steel pourer on a dangerous platform pushed down on a long lever to open a stream of molten steel into a mold. On rail tracks about 15 molds were lined up to complete the pour. A runner occurred once every three months of so when the steel pourer’s lever would malfunction causing the stream not to stop between molds. The ladle crane operator was on his own at that point. All workers in the area would scream “RUNNER!” and flee the platform. Imagine molten steel at 2,900 degrees flying everywhere as the operator moved the steady pouring ladle from mold to mold until the ladle was empty.”

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