FACE IT: Report Visual Extension: Officer Struck by a Motorhome While Establishing Temporary Traffic Control on Interstate – Tennessee

Details

• Personal Author:
  Lancaster J ; Moore, Melanie L.
• Description:
  25-year-old police officer was fatally injured when he was struck by a motorhome and dragged under the trailer it was pulling on a four-lane interstate highway. The officer had responded to a jackknifed and overturned pickup/trailer combination that was blocking an entrance ramp to the interstate northbound lanes. To assist with traffic control, the officer positioned his patrol unit south of the entrance ramp in lane three, and a Tennessee Department of Transportation help truck operator positioned his vehicle next to the patrol unit to block the shoulder and lane four. The officer and help truck operator were standing between their vehicles, when a motorhome pulling a trailer approached the scene in lane three (lane second from the right). The motorhome and trailer sideswiped the help truck and struck the officer. The officer was dragged underneath the trailer for 116 feet before the motor home came to a stop. He died at the scene. Contributing Factors: 1) Motorhome driver did not slow down and merge left. 2) Positioning of patrol unit. 3) Law enforcement officer standing in partially open lane. 4) Law enforcement officer looking away from oncoming traffic; discussing traffic control with help truck operator. 5) Delay in updating dynamic message sign. Recommendations: 1) State, county, and municipal authorities should consider promoting public awareness campaigns to inform motorists of the risks that law enforcement officers face while operating along the roadside and of the need to follow "Move Over" laws. 2) Law enforcement officers and other emergency responders should identify and move to a safe area within an established temporary traffic control zone that minimizes their exposure to oncoming vehicle traffic and should maintain situational awareness. 3) Law enforcement agencies should consider developing a standard operating procedure that includes guidance on how to properly establish a temporary traffic control plan, including advance warning and transition areas for highway/roadway emergency incidents. 4) Emergency responders should consider positioning patrol units and other emergency vehicles as they arrive on-scene to maximize the protected work zone for the emergency responders. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Automobiles Emergency Responders Law Enforcement Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident Analysis Accident Prevention Automobile Safety Emergency Responders Injury Prevention Law Enforcement Workers Police Officers Recommendations Region 4 Safety Practices Traumatic Injuries

  More +
• FACE - Firefighter:
  Cause of Death: Medical ; Structure Fire: Arson
• Series:
  Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Subseries:
  Law Enforcement Officers (LEO)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHFACEL201601V
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Interagency Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study ; Case Report
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 4 ; Tennessee ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSR - Division of Safety Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-9
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20063603
• 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 LEO 2016-01, 2021 Sep; :1-9
• Contact Point Address:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation, Surveillance and Field Investigations Branch, Division of Safety Research, NIOSH, 1000 Frederick Lane, M/S 1808, Morgantown, West Virginia 26505-2888
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  92 - Public Administration - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  20140510
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d4abd3edc42238cb37ca17e4c354642d8deca5bfb7c922bd2b131f42ee4012976cba85c33afccee0f275815b98df11267095ef806a482b2776f2b150676cef64
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/228546/cdc_228546_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 642.93 KB ]