Inspection Detail

Inspection: 119993848 - Cox Communications

Inspection Information - Office: San Diego District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 12:00 noon on December 8, 1995, Employee #1, a cable TV inspector, was in an alley climbing a 28 ft ladder to disconnect the television cable service to a house. After ascending his ladder, he noticed that the hooks at the top of the ladder were not set or secured over the cable; the ladder was resting on the telephone line below the cable. He panicked and slid down the ladder fast. At about 12 ft from the concrete ground, he fell and landed feet first. He sustained a broken right leg and fractured heels. He was transported to Mercy Hospital for treatment, including surgery. According to the employer, Employee #1 was properly trained and had done the same job a hundred times; however, he failed to follow the proper procedures for erecting the ladder. He was reprimanded and retrained. No safety violations were observed during the inspections and no accident-related safety violation was cited. The employer had provided cable television services to San Diego for the past 33 years.

Keywords: FRACTURE, CABLE TV WORK, UNSECURED, WORK RULES, LADDER, LADDER HOOKS, FALL, FOOT, LEG, UNSTABLE POSITION