Inspection Detail

Inspection: 126201516 - John S Meek Co Inc

Inspection Information - Office: Los Angeles District Office

Investigation Summary

On September 28, 2007, Employee #1, an oiler, was working with a coworker (crane operator) at a roadside excavation site. According to the crane operator, at the time of the accident, the crane was digging soil at the storm drain. when the clam bucket came up, the crane operator noticed that the tag line was stuck; he saw the tag line did not spool on the ram but was wound around the outside causing the line to snag. The operator decided to land the bucket on a pile of spoils beside the crane. He swung the bucket over the pile and tried to land the bucket by booming down but this pulled the tag line spool off the boom and hit Employee #1, the oiler, standing below. Employee #1 was hit on the head breaking his hard hat. The crane operator did not see Employee #1 when he swung the bucket. According to Employee #1, the day before the accident, the main line would not spool well onto the drum, to correct this, the operator extended bucket away to undo spooling but the tag line was short and this yanked the tag line off the wheel spool. Employee #1 and the crane operator worked overtime to reinstall the tag line assembly. The next day, they started work approximately 6:30 a.m. At approximately 12:00 p.m., the bucket again got snagged by the tag line. The crane operator asked Employee #1 to "check the tag line, there's something wrong with it". Employee #1 went to check it but could not remember what happened next. Employee #1 was in an ambulance when he regained consciousness. Employee #1 sustained deep cut on his forehead. The employer reported that Employee #1 sustained a head injury. Employee #1 was hospitalized for six days.

Keywords: HARD HAT, CONSTRUCTION, EQUIPMENT FAILURE, LACERATION, STRUCK BY, TAG LINE, CRANE