Inspection Detail

Inspection: 106466741 - Robert Hartman

Inspection Information - Office: Wilkes Barre Area Office

Investigation Summary

At or about 11:00 a.m. on April 26, 1995, Employee #1, a masonry/general contractor, went to the Chestnut Hill Township Recycling Plant located outside of Effort, PA. The steel building is 110 ft long by 50 ft wide, with a roof pitch of 4:12 and an eave height of 17 ft above the ground. Employee #1 told the manager at the recycling center that he was going to caulk holes in the roof. He put a ladder up against the right side of the building and climbed the ladder onto the metal roof. Approximately 5 to 15 minutes later, a resident, who was driving onto the property, saw a man lying on the ground. He immediately informed the manager and she proceeded to the area. Employee #1 was found lying face down with a pocket knife and caulking gun lying beside him. The knife had caulking and dirt stuck to the blade. She assumed he fell from the roof and immediately called 911. Employee #1 was never revived on site and was pronounced dead at the scene at 12:36 p.m. by the Monroe County Deputy Coroner. The investigation revealed that the employee was not using any fall protection while on the roof and he was wearing sneakers with smoothly worn soles. There were no witnesses to the accident. There were no marks visible to indicate that Employee #1 may have slid for a distance before leaving the roof, nor is there any evidence of any structural failure. In reconstructing the accident CSHO believes that the employee was walking across the roof near the eaves while cutting the end off a tube of caulking with a pocket knife. He apparently misjudged his distance and walked off the edge. The condition of his sneakers may have contributed to the fall.

Keywords: REPAIR, ROOF, WORK RULES, SLIP, CONSTRUCTION, FALL, FALL PROTECTION, SAFETY SHOE