Abstract: At approximately 6:15 a.m. on September 8, 1998, Employee #1, an employee of Ramirez Farms in Santa Maria, California, was operating a tractor that was hooked to a trailer. The tractor ran off the road and down an embankment into a ravine. The road was a narrow paved road and had wide dirt shoulders on each side. Its total width was approximately 30 ft. There was no water in the ravine. The ravine was approximately 30-ft deep and had a grade of 45 degrees. Employee #1 suffered broken right hip and ankle, and also some back injuries. He was hospitalized. There was a roll-over protective structure and seat belt on the tractor. However, the operator was not wearing the seat belt.