Services to Buildings and Dwellings Fatality Narrative: Maintenance Coordinator Dies After Falling from Ladder

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Washington (State). Department of Labor and Industries
• Description:
  A 47-year-old maintenance coordinator died after falling from a ladder. He worked for his employer, a property management business, for three years doing general house maintenance. When the incident happened, the worker was alone, touching up the exterior paint of a one-story house being prepared for sale. The homeowner had arrived around 1 p.m., talked briefly with the worker, and went inside to sleep. No one else saw the worker until 7 p.m., when a home appraiser found him badly injured lying on his back. He fell onto rocks and concrete at the base of an 18- foot fully extended, portable, metal articulated or multi-positional ladder. The ladder's bottom half was leaning on a 6-foot below grade rock retaining wall near the basement entrance. The top half was resting horizontally on the ground level grass surface. The appraiser called 911 and tried to wake the homeowner. When paramedics arrived, the worker was bleeding from his head, still breathing but unresponsive. Missed call messages on a phone found in the worker's pocket led paramedics to estimate he was on the ground for about 3 hours. He was airlifted to the hospital, where he died the next day from severe head injuries. Following the incident, investigators found: The employer did not ensure the ladder was secured from accidental movement. The ladder was not in the self-supporting position with hinges locked, which created unstable work conditions that exposed the worker to a fall of around six feet. The employer did not provide documented ladder safety training and an on-site safety orientation as part of their accident prevention program (APP). The employer stated the ladder did not belong to them. REQUIREMENTS: Place the ladder either: (a) With a secure footing on a firm, level support surface; or (b) Secure the ladder to prevent accidental displacement. Train employees to recognize ladder hazards and the procedures to minimize these hazards. Develop and implement a formal, written accident prevention program (APP) with a safety orientation that includes: (g) An on-the-job review of the practices necessary to perform the initial job assignments in a safe manner. RECOMMENDATIONS: FACE investigators concluded that to help prevent similar occurrences, employers should: Ensure workers use ladders according to manufacturer's safety guidelines and warnings and maintain a 3-point contact, staying near the middle of the ladder, and facing it when climbing. Provide training to workers in each type of ladder they will use, including how to properly inspect, set up, secure, climb, relocate, transport, maintain, and store the ladder. Supervise a lone worker's safety by visiting work sites and requiring regular phone check-ins. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidental Falls Accidents Construction Industry Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  Construction Fall Protection Falls Ladders Personal Protective Equipment PPE Protective Measures Safety Education Safety Equipment Safety Measures Safety Practices Training Worker Safety

  More +
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Publisher:
  Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Case Studies
• 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:20067622
• Citation:
  Olympia, WA: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, 71-239-2023, 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:
  Services to buildings and dwellings fatality narrative: maintenance coordinator dies after falling from ladder
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8966d0deaf6916312b6f0df36ef8120cef018cdb372693c5b3e9d1164a43345bae75c2479e6505649e4498d4cbbf103285ebb36b4b0210ab310442c95dacacf0
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/229186/cdc_229186_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 262.57 KB ]