Accident Report Detail
Accident Summary Nr: 201031523 - Employee injured in fall from pallet when forklift overturns
| Inspection Nr | Date Opened | SIC | NAICS | Establishment Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 120300793 | 07/24/1998 | 6514 | 0 | 99 Only Stores |
Abstract: On July 13, 1998, Employee #1, age 19, was assisting a coworker who was using a forklift and a makeshift 3 ft 4 in. by 4 ft 10 in. by 3 ft bale work platform made of compressed cardboard to clean an awning. The coworker placed the bale on a pallet on the forks, then climbed into it and elevated the forks to begin cleaning. When Employee #1 arrived to help, he stood with the coworker in the bale; one of them scrubbed the surface of the awning, the other hosed it down with water from a hose pipe. At one point, the coworker descended to move the lift truck and elevate the forks while Employee #1 remained in the bale. During this process, the fork truck began to tilt, possibly because the cardboard bale, now water-soaked, was quite heavy. Before Employee #1 could react, the lift truck overturned, the bale came off the forks, and Employee #1 fell 13 ft with the falling pallet. He sustained a back injury, swelling of his left leg, and a bruised kidney. He was transported to Tri-City Medical Center, where he was hospitalized for three days. The causal factors of this accident were (1) allowing an employee to ride on the forks of a forklift, a violation of T8CCR 3664(a)(4); (2) failure to fulfill certain conditions with respect to the platform, etc. necessary when an employee is elevated using an industrial truck, a violation of T8CCR 3657(a); and (3) failure to instruct employees on safe operating procedures before elevating them using an industrial truck, a violation of T8CCR 3657(h).
| Employee # | Inspection Nr | Age | Sex | Degree of Injury | Nature of Injury | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 120300793 | Hospitalized injury | Other | Stock handlers and baggers |
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