Investigation Report Worker Fatality - Fall From Truck Deck September 16, 2014

Transcription

1 Investigation Report Worker Fatality - Fall From Truck Deck September 16, 2014 Report No - OHS D9370 February 2016 Page 1 of 5

2 The contents of this report This document reports s investigation of a fatal incident that occurred in September, It begins with a short summary of what happened. The rest of the report covers this same information in greater detail. Incident summary On September 16, 2014 at approximately 1:15 pm, a worker was in the process of loading scaffolding and other equipment onto the back of a flat deck truck at an equipment rental yard. The worker had just finished loading the final piece of equipment by hand, when he fell from the rear of the truck, sustaining fatal injuries. Background information Matthews Equipment Limited O/A Hertz Equipment Rental Corporation (Hertz) is an international industrial and construction equipment rental company with a location in Grande Prairie, Alberta. Hertz is the owner of the worksite where rented equipment was supplied from and where the incident took place. Tradesmen Enterprises Limited Partnership (Tradesmen) is a Grande Prairie, Alberta based company involved in the construction and maintenance of oilfield facilities and pipelines. Tradesmen utilized Hertz to supply rental equipment for their work project. The worker was a 60 year old male, who had started employment with Tradesmen on April 2, 2012 as a tool crib attendant. The tool crib attendant worked primarily at the fab shop in shipping and receiving. The bulk of the job included loading and unloading trucks and tending to the tool crib. On the date of the incident, however, the worker was working as a parts runner, picking up supplies and equipment from different locations to deliver out to the field. The worker had previous experience working as a parts runner. Equipment and materials Truck The truck involved was a 2011 GMC Sierra 3500 HD flat deck, registered to Tradesmen Enterprises Inc. The truck was loaded with various scaffold materials that were picked up and loaded at the Hertz rental yard, to be delivered to a work site. Trailer The trailer attached to the truck was a 2011 Load Trail registered to Tradesmen Enterprises Inc. Page 2 of 5

3 A Figure 1 shows the truck and trailer as it was found, post incident. A The approximate location where the worker fell from the deck of the truck. Sequence of events On September 16, 2014, at approximately 1:00 pm, the worker arrived at the Hertz rental yard in Grande Prairie to pick up a load of scaffold materials and other supplies that were to be used at a work site outside of Grande Prairie. A Customer Service Representative for Hertz (Hertz employee) met with the worker and discussed what was being picked up. The majority of the scaffold materials were loaded onto the deck of the Tradesmen truck at a sea can in the southwest corner of the Hertz yard by the worker and the Hertz employee. The items loaded at the sea can included scaffold frames, platforms (decking), guardrails, and braces. As it was the worker s decision on how to load the equipment, the items were loaded in that specific order. The Hertz employee helped load the items by hand at the worker s direction. Once the items were loaded onto the truck deck, the worker drove the truck and trailer to the main shipping area at the warehouse to load the remaining items. The items were on a pallet Page 3 of 5

4 inside of the warehouse. The Hertz employee used a forklift to bring the pallet of materials to the truck for the worker to load. The items loaded from the pallet onto the truck deck included 2 heavy duty flange spreaders (pop-its), one smaller flange spreader (pop-it), and 16 scaffold adjustable baseplates (levelers). The worker was positioned on the back of the truck deck on top of the previously loaded frames and platforms. The worker began to lift the materials from the pallet and set them into an available space at the front of the truck deck. A B Figure 2 shows the stacked scaffold platforms positioned on the deck of the truck. A The area at the front of the truck where the remaining materials were placed by the worker. B - The rear passenger side of the truck deck where the worker fell from. After the last item had been loaded onto the truck, the Hertz employee began to return to the warehouse. While driving the forklift around the Tradesmen truck, he looked to his right, in the direction of the truck, and witnessed the worker falling in midair, toward the ground at the rear of the truck. He saw the worker hit the ground head first and roll onto his back. Page 4 of 5

5 The Hertz employee stopped the forklift and ran to summon a first aider from inside the warehouse. The Hertz employee then called 911 to have emergency medical services (EMS) attend. First aid was administered to the worker until EMS arrived. The worker was transported to hospital but died of his injuries shortly after arrival. Completion A review for enforcement action was completed on March 3, 2016 and it was determined that prosecution or an administrative penalty were not appropriate based on the circumstances surrounding this incident. This file was closed on March 10, ORIGINAL REPORT SIGNED March 11, 2016 Lead Investigator ORIGINAL REPORT SIGNED March 16, 2016 Manager ORIGINAL REPORT SIGNED March 16, 2016 Director Page 5 of 5