Mechanic killed by excavator bucket during maintenance

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Oregon Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (Program) (OR-FACE) ; Oregon Health & Science University. Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences
• Description:
  A 47-year-old mechanic was killed by an excavator bucket during a maintenance operation. The conveyor on a portable rock crusher had stopped working, and the mechanic and equipment operators were working to raise the conveyor with the arm of a hydraulic excavator to get underneath. The mechanic stood on the conveyor, 15 feet above the ground, to complete the task of rigging a chain to attach the frame of the conveyor to the lifting eye on the excavator bucket - when the excavator boom suddenly dropped and swung, and crushed him. The excavator operator had leaned forward for a better view of the mechanic working at the bucket, and when sitting back down the pocket of his raincoat caught on the left-side control handle for the boom, and activated it. RECOMMENDATIONS: 1. Loose clothing should be avoided when operating machinery and all tools/equipment should be stored outside the cab. 2. Eliminate or reduce worker exposure to hazards by installing or purchasing equipment with protective features, such as "quick connects" or built-in anchor points, 3. To aid in hazard identification and correction, employers should conduct and document workplace hazard assessments to include all job tasks, including maintenance, and ensure safe work procedures are followed. 4. Use a dedicated signal-person in complex and limited sight lifts/picks. 5. During lifting operations, individuals working near the point of operation should reposition themselves away from pinch points and the potential swing pivot area of machinery. 6. Employers should ensure that workers are trained to perform best safety practices in each role during lifting operations with heavy machinery, including machine operators, signal-persons, and riggers.
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident-analysis Accident-prevention Injuries Injury-prevention Machine-operation OSHA Region 10 Safety-education Safety-practices Traumatic-injuries Work-operations Work-practices

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• FACE - NIOSH and State:
  FACE ; Other
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  State
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHSFACE08OR001
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Oregon ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-8
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20041851
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2013-103214
• Citation:
  Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 08OR001, 2012 Sep ; :1-8
• Email:
  orface@ohsu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon Health & Science University
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  423320 - Brick, Stone, and Related Construction Material Merchant Wholesalers - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  2005/07/01
• End Date:
  2026/06/30
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:5e8e0aee10d74c38c0187fae6ddb1a470ec897e1d8e075a4dab23ff2a2795ee1b0bfec1755959a9129eba522f7a57adcf8d7a0f145817109bab6601c5cc9636d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/165183/cdc_165183_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 188.40 KB ]