Inspection Detail

Inspection: 126175520 - Peerless Bldg Maintenance

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 4:45 a.m. on November 29, 2000, Employee #1, a window washer, was working for medium-sized corporation providing building maintenance services, from surface maintenance to janitorial services. Employee #1 had worked for the company for over 2 years, performing the various window washer duties. The employee was part of a four-man contractor crew assigned to the Getty Museum Rotunda window-washing project since November 27, 2000. The crew worked the night shift and safely used the UpRight on most of the Rotunda. On the morning of the accident, the crew arrived at a narrow work location, which could not accommodate the width of the man lift with outriggers attached. The supervisor instructed Employee #1 to stand in the man-basket, while he and two other employees placed their hands in the outrigger casings, in order to depress the sensor switches so the interlocks for the outriggers were overridden. After the unit was elevated to 37 feet, the supervisor and another coworker attempted to push the UpRight along the wall. The unit slid and tipped over causing Employee #1 to fall along with the unit to which he was attached. Los Angeles City Paramedics and the Los Angeles County Coroner pronounced the employee dead at the site. Warning labels attached to the base and man-basket of the lift prohibited its use without outriggers and prohibited pushing the unit when the platform was elevated and men were inside. Since the supervisor and the other members of the crew witnessed the accident, all were interviewed.

Keywords: WINDOW WASHER, MAINTENANCE, SAFETY LATCH, OUTRIGGER, WORK RULES, FALL, CONCUSSION, DISCONNECTING MEANS, ELEVATED WORK PLAT, UNTRAINED