Workers Killed When Scaffolds Not Tied-Off

Case Report from OSHA files

• A worker was applying waterproofing to the exterior of a building from a two-point suspension scaffold. Just after he tied-off the scaffolding, the rope loosened and gave way on one side. According to witnesses, the worker slipped out of his safety belt and fell three floors to a concrete walkway and injured his head. He was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital at 11:55 a.m.
  


• At approximately 2:00 p.m., a painter and a helper were scraping, glazing, and painting windows from a 32-foot-high two-point suspension scaffold. The employees stopped painting because it started to rain. They pulled 7/8-inch manila hoisting ropes up to the work platform and laid them over the top of the guardrail system at both ends of the 19-foot-long scaffold platform. The painter sent the helper to the sidewalk below to receive the tools and paint buckets. While lowering the materials to his helper, the painter was thrown from the scaffold platform when the platform tipped over. He died. The employees were not using fall protection, and the scaffold was not tied off.

Damaged Components Lead to Fall; Inspection Could Have Saved Life

Case Report from OSHA files

• Two laborers were working on a motorized two-point suspension scaffold, 70 feet above ground level, without safety belts, lanyards, or lifelines. An "eye" formed by three wire rope clips, which connected the wire rope to the C-hook, failed to hold, and one end of the scaffold came down. One employee fell to the ground, and the second employee at the other end was catapulted through an open window, where he was pulled to safety by office workers. Two of the rope clips were still attached to the end of the rope after the accident. The third clip fell to the ground, and was found to have stripped threads.