FACE Facts: Falling Vehicles Kill

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  California. Department of Public Health
• Description:
  The California Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) program has been investigating work-related deaths since 1992. The goal of the FACE program is to prevent these deaths by informing workers and managers of worksite hazards and how to avoid them. The two incidents below involve automobile mechanics who died when jack stands moved, causing the vehicles or machinery to fall and crush them. A MECHANIC IS KILLED BY A FALLING FORKLIFT: A 52­year­old mechanic, Pedro G.* (*Not the victim's real name), died when a forklift slipped off a jack and the forklift hit him in the head. Pedro jacked up the forklift using a hydraulic jack. He did not use jack stands, wood blocks, or any other rigid, stable support to hold the forklift after it had been jacked up. The area of the shop yard under the forklift had a slight incline. Pedro chocked only one wheel of the forklift with a wooden block. The forklift slipped while he was lying on a creeper underneath the forklift. Some workers may assume they can safely work underneath vehicles that are only supported by a jack. Jacks should never be the only support of a vehicle when someone is underneath that vehicle. They should be used to lift the vehicle enough so that additional support can be positioned. A MECHANIC IS CRUSHED UNDER A FALLING BUS: A 48­year­old mechanic, Jeremy L.*(*Not the victim's real name), died when a bus that fell off jack stands crushed him. Jeremy had jacked the bus up with lifts that cradle each rear tire. He then placed jack stands underneath the rear suspension. They were not of a standard design. The front tires had not been chocked. The bus slipped off the jack stands as he was performing a brake job. The bus crushed Jeremy between the rear axle and the concrete floor. Vehicles may move if the chocking is inadequate. At a minimum, chocks should be placed on both sides of the wheel diagonally opposite of where the jack is placed. RECOMMENDATIONS: Support vehicles adequately. Use ASME-approved jack stands, wood (not concrete) blocks, or other rigid, stable supports. Prevent vehicle movement. Work on level surfaces and adequately chock the vehicle's wheels. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Automobiles Mortality Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Automobile Repair Shops Fatalities Forklifts Injuries Injury Prevention Mechanics Safety Practices
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Publisher:
  California Department of Public Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Fact Sheet
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20060232
• Citation:
  Richmond, CA: California Department of Public Health, 2002 Apr; :1-2
• Contact Point Address:
  California Department of Public Health, Occupational Health Branch (OHB), FACE Program, 850 Marina Bay Parkway, Building P, 3rd Floor, Richmond, CA 94804
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2002
• Performing Organization:
  Public Health Institute
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19910930
• Source Full Name:
  FACE facts: falling vehicles kill
• End Date:
  20060831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d7eb8e750272a8073bc63efb682b4ef72dae6f2343dba3e3b7c68e3301f07474bfe4fc587135db454589af8531499171828371fae0ebe1c7af535550078acae9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/229027/cdc_229027_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 309.52 KB ]