Tip Sheet: Taken for a Ride

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Washington (State). Department of Labor and Industries
• Description:
  Riding the trailer door looks like a quick way down, but it actually puts truck drivers at risk for fall, strain, and crush injuries. A 38-year-old driver learned this the hard way. He was getting out of his trailer after moving some freight. In a rush, he grabbed the latch handle to ride the trailer door down to the ground. Suddenly, the left side door cable broke loose and the heavy door dropped hard and fast. The driver fell on his back and the door slammed into his mid-section, pinning him with his upper body hanging out of the trailer. The decision to ride the door resulted in an abdominal crush injury, months of lost work, reduced income, and a slow and painful recovery. The driver could have avoided this had he used the grab handle and 3-points of contact. TIPS TO LIVE BY: Keep up on preventative maintenance of the trailer door, grab handles, straps, and footholds. Have a policy and system to immediately report issues and keep trucks and trailers out of use until maintenance is complete. Use 3-points of contact facing trailer, holding firmly onto grab handles, gaining stable, balanced footing, and climbing all steps. Use the strap to close the door when you are safely on the ground. Before you exit, look for slip, trip, and fall hazards such as debris, crumbling pavement, ice or water on the ground. Wear slip-resistant footwear with good traction and high visibility clothing. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidental Falls Accidents Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Equipment Maintenance Falling Objects Injuries Injury Prevention Safety Practices 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:20058775
• Citation:
  Olympia, WA: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, 90-103-2019, 2019 Sep; :1
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2019
• Performing Organization:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Tip sheet: taken for a ride
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:403fac1811a42c02b47ac558f94cd63228b9f4dd9f2a1ce86065956d5b1236671c63344d152040b586b79572c7cea9de77a0d80ebbe305aedfb05503e7413d03
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/223173/cdc_223173_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 174.68 KB ]