UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

At 12:00 a.m. on July 2, 2019, Employee #1 was unloading material from a refrige rated trailer unit that was docked in a warehouse distribution facility. The tr ailer was secured to prevent movement using a mechanical dock lock. Employee #1 was working with a Blue Giant Vertical Dock Plate in the upright position. Whe n the trailer was in position, Employee #1 opened the overhead dock door using t he primary control panel, located next to the dock plate system. The employee t hen released the locking mechanism of the dock plate and stepped between the pla te and the control panel in order to step down into an open area between the doc k plate and the trailer. Employee #1 then began to open the roll-up door of the trailer, but did not notice that the dock plate had continued to lower into pos ition behind him. As the employee turned, he realized that the plate was moving into position and attempted to push it up. The plate caught the employee in th e neck, leading to death by mechanical asphyxiation.