An elevator construction foreman was caught under an elevator car and died of injuries to the head and neck and compression asphyxia

Details

• Personal Author:
  Goddard, Keith L. ; Weber, Philip P.
• Corporate Authors:
  Maryland Fatality Assessment & Control Evaluation Program (Maryland FACE) ; Maryland. Division of Labor and Industry
• Description:
  On September 24, 1996, 53-year-old male elevator construction foreman (the victim) was killed and his helper, an elevator constructor (employed by another subcontractor) was injured, when the hydraulic elevator car they were working under fell on them. The two were adjusting the hydraulic cylinder when the car fell, trapping them in the elevator pit. Two wooden poles (4x4 by approximately twelve-feet long ) used to keep the elevator from falling were placed leaning against the guide rails. The car was approximately fifteen inches above the poles, which they did not tie in place. The poles were knocked out of position when the car fell due to the sudden loss of hydraulic pressure and trapped the two workers under the car. The elevator apparently did not fall evenly to the bottom of the pit. This permitted the rescue team to enter the pit area and extract the injured. However, rescuers had to use air bags to help raise the car to remove the victim. The MD/FACE Field Investigator concluded that to prevent similar future occurrences, employers should: 1. Train employees in the recognition of hazards, and methods to control hazards. 2. Develop, set up and enforce comprehensive written instructions for making adjustments to hydraulic elevators. Develop, set up and enforce comprehensive written instructions for making adjustments to hydraulic elevators.
• Content Notes:
  Publication Date provided by FACE program
  
  not printed on the report
  
  
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Construction Industry Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident-potential Accident-prevention Construction Construction-workers Injuries Injury-prevention OSHA Region 3 Traumatic-injuries Work-practices
• FACE - NIOSH and State:
  FACE ; Construction
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  State
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHSFACE96MD055
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Maryland ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  5 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20026198
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2007-107691
• 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 96MD055, 1997 Apr ; :1-5
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1997
• Performing Organization:
  Maryland Division of Labor and Industry
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  31-33 - Manufacturing - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  1993/09/30
• End Date:
  1998/09/29
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:08fd2e3aaf62449302148df34c3c5be63b8ce730aa0866bc7f8d76a663be67d9db87087d46f754328d5527febe978ef5ee2bd0c8a6180045c3c77b1c93a0836c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/170309/cdc_170309_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 27.41 KB ]