Accident Report Detail

Accident Summary Nr: 201352432 - Employee dies from 27-foot fall

Accident Summary Nr: 201352432 -- Report ID: 0419700 -- Event Date: 04/02/2004
Inspection Nr	Date Opened	SIC	NAICS	Establishment Name
306750258	04/05/2004	1761	238160	G.R. Hammonds Roofing, Inc.

Abstract: On April 2, 2004, Employee #1 and coworkers were part of a crew involved in the installation of a metal roof on a residential duplex building. Each member of the crew on the roof was using a conventional fall protection system which included a roof anchor, a safety harness/lanyard, a safety rope and a rope grab. The anchor was made of two 0.125-inch thick metal plates that were attached together with a hinge. The hinge enabled the anchor to be placed atop the roof ridge and allow the two plates to be secured to each side of the roof. Each plate had ten predrilled holes through which twenty, 16D nails were to be used to secure it to the roof. According to the manufacturer's installation instructions, all nails were to be used, and the plates were to be nailed through the roof sheeting into a roof truss to ensure proper operation. Employee #1 installed the anchor and secured his fall protection while he was working on the edge of the eave. For some reason, he slipped and fell from the roof. The force of his fall and his weight caused the anchor to tear loose from the roof and Employee #1 fell 27 feet to the ground. He died as a result of his injuries. A detailed investigation revealed that Employee #1 had placed the anchor improperly into the ridge or peak of the roof, only using three screws to secure one of the plates and did not secure the remaining plate of the anchor. Additionally, the employer had failed to train the employees in the correct procedure for erecting, maintaining and inspecting their fall protection system; especially the installation of the anchor.

Keywords: FRACTURE, HEAD, ROOF, CARPENTER, SLIP, FALL, FALL PROTECTION, WORK SURFACE

Accident Details
End Use		Project Type		Project Cost	Stories	Non-building Height	Fatality
Multi-family dwelling		New project or new addition		$250,000 to $500,000	2		X

Employee Details
Employee #	Inspection Nr	Age	Sex	Degree of Injury	Nature of Injury	Occupation	Construction
1	306750258			Fatality	Fracture	Occupation not reported	Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: 27 feet Cause: Roofing Fatality Cause: Fall from roof

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