Vibratory Hammer Operator Killed when Crushed Between a Crane Superstructure and its Left Rear Track - Massachusetts

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Massachusetts Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Project (Massachusetts FACE) ; Massachusetts. Department of Public Health
• Description:
  On March 24, 2003, a 57-year-old male vibratory hammer operator (the victim) was fatally injured when he was crushed between a crane superstructure and its left rear track on a construction site. The crew had been on site to install steel sheet pilings. There had been an extended delay in the steel sheet piling installation task due to an obstruction in the ground. During the installation delay, the victim entered the crane's swing radius and was crushed when the crane operator moved the crane and swung the superstructure without advanced notice. An onsite worker and a Massachusetts State trooper, who was passing by the construction site, discovered the victim. The trooper stopped and placed a call for help. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel arrived within minutes of the call, and the victim was pronounced dead at the incident site. The Massachusetts FACE Program concluded that, to prevent similar occurrences in the future, employers should: 1. Ensure that the swing radius of each crane has been barricaded to prevent employees from entering the swing radius. 2. Store all tools that are needed by workers, other than the crane operator, outside of the crane's swing radius. 3. Ensure crane and/or superstructure movement occurs only when an "all clear" signal is given to the operator. 4. Brief workers prior to beginning unscheduled tasks to discuss what tasks each worker will be performing. 5. Consider the use of electronic devices or sensors to warn equipment operators of workers on foot in the immediate work area.
• Subjects:
  • Accident Prevention
  • Accidents
  • Accidents, Occupational
  • Construction Industry
  • Occupational Health
  • Personal Protective Equipment
  • Safety
  • Safety Management
  • Staff Development
  • Workplace
• Keywords:
  • OSHA Region 1
  • Accident-analysis
  • Accident-prevention
  • Accidents
  • Injuries
  • Injury-prevention
  • Traumatic-injuries
  • Work-operations
  • Work-analysis
  • Work-areas
  More +
• FACE - NIOSH and State:
  FACE ; Construction ; Machine (All) ; Machine - Construction ; Prevention through Design (PtD)
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  State
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHSFACE03MA006
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-8
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20029330
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2006-106705
• 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 03MA006, 2005 Jan ; :1-6
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2005
• Performing Organization:
  Massachusetts Department of Health
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  23 - Construction - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  1992/09/30
• End Date:
  2006/08/31
• Resource Number:
  FACE-03MA006
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/166377/cdc_166377_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 147.75 KB]
• Collection(s):
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d6272bffe68e7b9129a553190780127586f411f7fd2913770ea8e73a2baced5a656340a6c1cd2d8c93e8146bb3e14ec27b43b9e3a3bb4ce0700ebb2c83876c3c