TIRES Tip Sheet: Tarping Related Fall Injuries to Drivers

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Washington (State). Department of Labor and Industries
• Description:
  What happened: Covering a load to protect it during transit can be dangerous. Falling off the load or trailer is no small matter. Following are summaries of fall injuries sustained while covering and uncovering loads with tarps. These examples are just a few of the many tarping related fall injuries experienced every year by Washington state truck drivers. Of the injuries summarized, the shortest amount of time lost from work was two months. Companies and drivers can't afford these types of injuries. A 49-year-old driver on his truck tarping a load fell off when the wind blew the tarp. He landed on his right shoulder, spraining it and developing serious complications. Workers' compensation costs were $170,000, including 227 weeks of time-loss. A 40-year-old driver tarping a load of wood chips fell from the catwalk of a trailer and landed on his left outstretched arm, breaking his wrist. Workers' compensation costs were $9,000, including 8 weeks of time-loss. A 45-year-old driver on his truck tarping a load of steel tubing fell to the pavement when the heel of his boot caught on a load strap. He sprained his neck, shoulder, and back. Workers' compensation costs were $28,000, including 40 weeks of timeloss. A 31-year-old driver taking a cord off of a tarp on top of a load of plywood slipped and fell 10 feet to the ground, spraining and fracturing his right ankle. Workers' compensation costs were $18,000, including 12 weeks of time-loss. How can you prevent similar incidents? Provide/carry a ladder to access the top of the load. Have drivers use tarping stations that customers make available. Equip dump trucks with auto tarping systems. Have drivers share techniques or tricks with other drivers. Use a forklift to get tarps on top of load, but don't ride the forks along with the tarp. Develop and document a fall prevention plan. Consider updating to curtain side vans. Have drivers roll tarps out forward rather than pulling backwards, so edges and voids are visible. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidental Falls Accidents Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Injuries Injury Prevention Lost Work Days Slips, Trips, And Falls STF Truck Drivers Trucking
• Publisher:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Fact Sheet
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 10 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20058468
• Citation:
  Olympia, WA: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, 90-3-2007, 2007 Feb; :1
• Contact Point Address:
  SHARP Program, TIRES Project, Department of Labor & Industries, PO Box 4330, Olympia, WA 98504
• Email:
  Edww235@LNI.wa.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2007
• Performing Organization:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  TIRES tip sheet: tarping related fall injuries to drivers
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:54500025cc1e1fab310f642291b94847b953d1aabece3d8240f143f19b922ff6606fbd47d2f35b40343149d4561da51ea6f62d2a615bf0cdf11b83cf01de6ce9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/221558/cdc_221558_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 429.86 KB ]