Inspection Detail

Inspection: 115334955 - Great Western Lumber Company

Inspection Information - Office: Dosh Everett Service Location, Everett, Wa

Investigation Summary

Employee #1 was working on a green chain at a sawmill, pulling lumber off the chain conveyor and stacking it by size. He would insert thin pieces of wood between each layer, with nine layers to a stack, and then place stickers on all the stacks. Once a stack was done, the load was released to roll down onto a 9 in. diameter pipe and out into the loading area to be picked up by forklifts. At the time of the accident, a stack had been released behind Employee #1, who was standing next to a roof support pole. A coworker on the green chain signaled Employee #1 that he was going to release a stack in front of him. Employee #1 signaled his understanding, and the stack was released. The pipe rolled over both of Employee #1's feet, bruising his left foot and fracturing bones in his right foot. Because of his position, Employee #1 had no place to escape the rolling load. He had misjudged the hazardous nature of the situation.

Keywords: CLEARANCE, FRACTURE, CONVEYOR, MECH MAT HANDLING, SAWMILL, STRUCK BY, FOOT, UNSTABLE LOAD