Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1498670.015 - The Drying Company, Llc

Inspection Information - Office: Va-E-Norfolk (Regional Office) - Safety 0355112

Investigation Summary

On October 21, 2020, a 20-year-old employee was working for a drywall and insulation contractor. His employer was doing interior work at a one-story single-family home. The employee was removing existing insulation from the attic above the garage, when he saw a snake beneath the insulation. Startled by the snake, and attempting to exit the attic, he stepped backward off the planks supporting him. He fell through the drywall of the ceiling approximately 10 feet (3.0 m) to the cement floor of the garage. He suffered an abrasion to his head. He was treated without hospitalization. The foreman had allowed employees to work on a walking/working surface with areas that did not have the strength and structural integrity to support an employee's weight. Areas between rafters where insulation was installed on top of drywall ceiling were not capable of supporting an employee's weight. No fall protection system was in use to prevent an employee from falling through the drywall ceiling.

Keywords: Abrasion, Animal, Ceiling, Ceiling Panel, Contusion, Drywall, Engineering Controls, Fall, Fall From Elevation, Fall Protection, Head, Inexperience, Misjudgment, Misjudgment of Hazardous Situation, Unstable Position, Walking Backward, Walking Surface, Work at Elevation