Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1431731.015 - Hoaloha Na Eha Ltd

Inspection Information - Office: Hi-E-Honolulu

Investigation Summary

At 2:30 p.m. on October 2, 2019, an employee was working on a vegetable farm. Although there was a language barrier, he was not a migrant farm worker. He was riding on the steps of a Kubota model LA681 front loader, or tractor, with serial number 14454, that a coworker was operating. The coworker was using the tractor to load and unload taro that was being harvested on the farm. The employee slipped from where he was sitting on the step of the tractor and fell onto the ground while the tractor was moving forward. The tractor first ran over his right leg, causing fractures. The operator reversed the tractor, and the front tire contacted and bruised the employee's rib. The operator moved forward again. This time, the back tire ran over the employee's left leg, causing fractures in this leg too. The employee was hospitalized. During an investigation, the employee said that he rode on the tractor with the operator every day and that all the employees on the farm rode on the tractor. He said that he either sat in the bucket of the tractor or on the steps. He added that he had not been informed by any staff where to sit on the tractor. He recommended that the employer have a practice session with the operators. The employee stated that he wore steel toed boots up to the incident. The coworker stated that there were no written rules about a second person's riding on the tractor while the tractor was being operated to load and unload taro. In the wake of the incident, a warning decal has been applied to equipment. A safety inspection officer observed a decal that stated "RIDERS CAN FALL OFF AND BE KILLED. - Maximum of one person to a seat - No riders in box or anywhere else." The warning decal was observed to be in pristine condition compared to the state of the equipment and its other decals.

Keywords: Agriculture, Agriculture Machinery/Vehicle, Fall, Farm, Farm Machinery, Farm worker, Fracture, Front End Loader, Harvesting, Leg, PPE, Rib, Riding on Equipment, Run Over, Safety Shoe, Slip, Step, Tire, Tractor, Training, Warning Sign, Work Rules