Construction Fatality Narrative: Operator Crushed Between Backhoe Boom and Stabilizer [2023]

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Washington (State). Department of Labor and Industries
• Description:
  A 54-year-old operator died when the raised boom of a backhoe loader swung and crushed him against one of the machine's retracted stabilizers. On the day of the incident, the operator was working at a job site where new single-family homes were being built. He had worked for his employer, a new housing construction contractor and subcontractor at the site, for two years. He first used the backhoe to excavate around an electrical junction box. After doing this, he used the backhoe's loader to place gravel around the box. He then moved the backhoe to the street where he parked it. He left the engine running and the backhoe boom elevated. He exited the cab and walked to the rear of the backhoe. No one saw what happened next, though investigators determined that as he was standing at the rear of the cab where the backhoe boom attached, he reached into the cab to retrieve a metal tool called a post pounder. As he was doing this, he apparently dropped the post pounder on one of the two foot pedals that controlled the backhoe boom swing. This caused the boom to swing sideways toward him, pinning and crushing him between the boom and one of the machine's two retracted stabilizers. REQUIREMENTS: Bulldozer and scraper blades, end-loader buckets, dump bodies, and similar equipment, must be either fully lowered or blocked when being repaired or when not in use. All controls must be in the neutral position, with the motors stopped and brakes set, unless work being performed required otherwise. You must not leave tools on the cab floor. You must not store spare cans of oil or fuel, and spare parts, in cabs, except in approved racks provided for that purpose. RECOMMENDATIONS: FACE investigators concluded that to help prevent similar occurrences: Instruct equipment operators and workers on foot to: Lower the boom to a safe position with the bucket on the ground and turn off the machine before stepping off for any reason. Never place tools, parts, or other objects in the cab that have the potential to activate the foot pedals or other controls. Never stand in the pinch point of the boom of a running or operating backhoe. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Mortality Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident Prevention Equipment Operation Fatalities Injuries Machine Operators Machine Safety Safety Education Worker Safety
• 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:20067582
• Citation:
  Olympia, WA: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, 71-238-2023, 2023 May; :1
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2023
• Performing Organization:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Construction fatality narrative: operator crushed between backhoe boom and stabilizer
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:47c8a778cc1e78d5e9f489c08893863f90e892b7dab61721f33d233b520f58f35780f58af9ce141d583500940a67c9da6f8e548bd3bc8d0521c94ff2bd8e53b9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/229185/cdc_229185_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 322.39 KB ]