Abstract: On February 15, 2012, three employees were working in an office parking lot. They were placing temporary covers over the trenches at the end of the shift. The Komatsu PC 200 excavator that was used to excavate the trench was being used to hoist and sequentially place 5 foot by 10 foot trench plates to cover the length of the excavation. Employee #1, a truck driver for the employer, had completed his delivery in the morning and was assigned by the office to remain on site and assist with miscellaneous tasks for the remainder of the day. Just prior to the injury to the employee, he was working alongside the trench, by the excavator, to assist in guiding the plates into position. Another employee was operating the Komatsu. The employer's foreman was working near his truck, away from the accident location. The specific task for the employee was to connect and disconnect the sling each time they hoisted and set a plate. The operator was lowering a trench plate into place and had the plate lined up close to its intended position. The plate was hoisted using a steel sling hooked through a hole in center of the trench plate, suspended from the excavator. The employee was steadying the plate as it was lowered, with his right foot. When the plate was just a few inches from the ground, it caught on something and jumped to the right side (the side on which the employee was standing), and fell a few inches onto the left foot of the employee. The employee suffered a serious injury, consisting of an amputation of his left big toe at the first joint and a laceration and fracture of the second toe. The accident occurred due to a combination of the employee not positioned at a safe working distance from an elevated load and the operator not maintaining awareness of the proximity of the employee to the hazard. The accident was reported by the fire department at approximately 5:00 p.m. on the same day. Additional details were provided to the Division by the employer the following day.