Inspection Detail

Inspection: 123532418 - G. E. Aucoin, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Bangor, Me 0112900

Investigation Summary

On October 20, 1998, Employee #1, who worked for a log harvesting company, had stopped to sharpen his chain saw in back of a Barco 160 log loader while it was loading a logging truck. The loader had swung around from a northeasterly position, picked up a log, swung west to deposit it on the truck, and then begun to swing back east to pick up another log. When the loader was facing north on its way east, the log that had just been deposited on the truck spun out. It came down in a vertical position between two of the load-holding posts, striking and killing Employee #1 while he was kneeling by the outrigger of the loader. The loader operator said he never even knew Employee #1 was in the area, and that he had heard Employee #1's supervisor tell him in June or July of 1998 never to be within two tree lengths of the loader when it was operating.

Keywords: LOADING, CLEARANCE, LOG LOADER, WORK RULES, STRUCK BY, FALLING OBJECT, LOGGING, UNSTABLE POSITION