Fatality Narrative: Foreman and Laborer Fall When Aerial Lift Struck by Vehicle

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Washington (State). Department of Labor and Industries
• Description:
  In July 2016, a 40-year-old construction foreman died and a 57-year-old laborer was injured when a truck struck the elevated aerial lift platform they were working in, ejecting them from the platform. The two men worked for a civil construction contractor that does, among other projects, bridge construction. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) hired the contractor to replace rubber bearing pads on an expressway bridge. Their task that day was to install replacement retaining rods underneath the bridge. Also known as seismic restrainers, these rods prevent excess movement of bridge elements. They were using a self-propelled telescopic boom-supported elevating work platform or aerial lift. They positioned the lift underneath the bridge in a dirt median between two roadway ramps. After loading equipment, they both stood on the platform while the foreman raised it and boomed out so that they could access the work area between girders on the bridge above. The work area was about 30 feet above a single lane of an elevated exit ramp. As the foreman was positioning the platform, it was struck by a box truck traveling in the lane below. The impact spun the platform 180 degrees and ejected the workers from the platform. The foreman was thrown 50 feet horizontally, landing on a railroad track 48 feet below. He died of his injuries. The laborer fell about 10 feet and dangled from his lanyard above the road until the truck driver and a passerby helped him down. Emergency responders took him to a hospital where he received treatment for abdominal injuries. The investigation determined (1) temporary traffic controls were not used, exposing the two workers to an open traffic lane, (2) traffic controls had been used on this project by the employer previously, though ramp closure was not permitted on business days, per the contract with SDOT, (3) though the two workers were wearing full body harnesses, neither of them fixed their lanyards to the manufacturer's provided and approved attachment points. The foreman's lanyard was not attached to anything, the laborer tied off to the platform's handrail. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Automobiles Construction Industry Occupational Health Safety Staff Development Workplace
• Keywords:
  Accident Prevention Construction Construction Equipment Construction Workers Guidelines Injuries Motor Vehicles Road Construction Safety Equipment Safety Measures Safety Practices Training Traumatic Injuries Work Environment Workers

  More +
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Publisher:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Report
• 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:20051392
• Citation:
  Olympia, WA: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, 71-160-2017, 2017 Jul; :1
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Fatality narrative: foreman and laborer fall when aerial lift struck by vehicle
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e35e11b6f860f6115ecde055ab0491161741fc4678cae29af3d1eade27f4702fe73c9e699fb781b3972e45a35e7e9df8bb3f1e0472261d9107be201e95647f92
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/228722/cdc_228722_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 338.62 KB ]