Accident Report Detail
Accident Summary Nr: 200780369 - Employee killed when crushed in log buncher
Inspection Nr | Date Opened | SIC | NAICS | Establishment Name |
---|---|---|---|---|
300554599 | 03/27/1998 | 2411 | 0 | Wilburn Harrison Contract Cutting |
Abstract: Employee #1 and a coworker, the owner of Wilburn Cutting, were trimming timber near a service road that was used to haul trees out of the woods and to the mill. The coworker, who was driving a Hydro-Ax tractor, picked up Employee #1 to take him to another staging area. Employee #1 retrieved his chain saw and stood on the Hydro-Ax saw head deck, between the bunching and gathering arms. As the coworker drove through a heavily wooded area, he had to lower the bunching arms, using the wobble stick control located inside the tractor. As the bunching arm descended, he noticed that it had also started to close. By the time the coworker reacted to what had happened and opened the bunching arm, Employee #1 had been crushed. The coworker later stated that the control switch had been sticking and the bunching arm had been partially closing on its own, something that was happening several times a day. Hydro-Ax was notified of the accident and the company sent their mechanic to the site. According to the coworker, the mechanic disassembled the wobble stick and observed that if the nut was closed tightly, the control switch would stick, but if it was left slightly loose, the control switch would operate normally.
Employee # | Inspection Nr | Age | Sex | Degree of Injury | Nature of Injury | Occupation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 300554599 | Fatality | Other | Occupation not reported |