FACE IT: Report Slides: Trooper Struck by Vehicle While Investigating Crash on Interstate Highway – Oklahoma

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program
• Description:
  A 30-year-old Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) trooper was fatally injured when he was struck by a passing motorist. The trooper had responded to a crash involving a tanker truck and was at the scene when the incident occurred. The tanker truck was overturned, blocking the left westbound lane of the interstate and extending into the median. One additional OHP trooper and two officers from the local county sheriff's office also responded to the crash. The two OHP troopers were standing in a westbound lane upstream of the lane closure in an area that was partially blocked to traffic, with their backs toward oncoming traffic, assessing the scene. At that time, a motorist driving in the westbound lane partially left the roadway, went around a patrol car, and struck both troopers. One OHP trooper died on impact; the other OHP trooper was critically injured and transported to a Level 1 trauma center. Contributing Factors - 1) Distracted motorist; 2) Visibility/Weather- dark, raining, wet roadway; 3) LEOs standing in partially blocked lane of traffic, upstream of the lane closure; 4) LEOs positioned with back to the direction of oncoming traffic; 5) Positioning of patrol cars-one before, one beyond; 6) Incident occurred during scene size-up; 7) Roaming civilians distracting LEOs; 8) 911 communication system. Recommendations - 1) State, county and municipal authorities should consider promoting public awareness campaigns for distracted driving laws and the risks law enforcement officers face while responding to highway/roadway incidents. 2) State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies should consider developing a standard operating procedure (SOP) for establishing safe work areas for emergency responders at highway/roadway incidents. 3) State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies should consider maximizing the use of patrol units and other responding emergency vehicles in the design of the temporary traffic control area as they arrive (i.e., deploying the vehicles). 4) State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies should consider developing a standard operating procedure (SOP) that includes guidance on how to properly establish a temporary traffic control plan, including advance warning and transition areas for highway/roadway emergency incidents. 5) State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies should consider developing and implementing a standard operating procedure (SOP) for response and vehicle/resource deployment protocols for highway/roadway incidents involving hazardous materials. 6) State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies should ensure all officers wear suitable high-visibility, retro-reflective vests when operating at highway/roadway incidents. The full version of this report is available here: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/leo/reports/L201501.html. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Automobiles Emergency Responders Law Enforcement Mortality Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident Analysis Accident Prevention Drivers Emergency Responders Fatalities Law Enforcement Workers Motor Vehicles Police Officers Region 6 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/NIOSHLEO201501RS
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study ; Case Report
• Place as Subject:
  Oklahoma ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 6 ; 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:20066322
• 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, LEO 2015-01, 2022 Nov; :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:
  2023
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  92 - Public Administration - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  20150131
• 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:b195d23c0ea08a36f491e54452cb2d234c6e3a1c97f2f2504ef6d00131649e086d74c7cb080eb21f2f325ea51885a085d0e98fac9482573ee37f777b081fd4de
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/228547/cdc_228547_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 694.42 KB ]