Days after a deadly crane collapse on Manhattan's West Side, officials say poor maintenance or improper handling may have led up to the tragedy.

Engineers have found defects in the hoisting system of a crane that crashed down Tuesday at the construction site for the 7 line extension.

The Buildings Department on Thursday said poor maintenance or improper handling of the rig may have contributed to the deadly accident.

Michael Simmermeyer, 30, was killed when a cable snapped and sent part of the crane crashing down.

Buildings officials say they are now focusing on maintenance and operation issues with the crane.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority says a January 10 inspection was postponed because the crane was in use at the time.

During his weekly radio show on 710 WOR, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the inspection process can always be improved.

"When you inspect, that means it's in compliance that day," Bloomberg said. "You can't inspect it every day. That means you look at how it's used and whether it's maintained and all of that sort of thing and our Buildings Department works with the MTA - it's an MTA construction project - but you know we're all in this together and we want to make sure people are safe."

A follow-up inspection had been scheduled for Thursday.