Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1524591.015 - Ave Sheet Metal And Rain Gutter Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Los Angeles District Office

Investigation Summary

At 1:00 p.m. on November 3, 2020, an employee was working for a firm that fabricated and installed sheet metal work, such as sheet metal ducts and rain gutters. His primary language was Spanish, which was the primary language of his coworkers as well. He did not speak English well. He had been born outside the United States but had lived in the United States for more than three years. His supervisor spoke Spanish, and the employee's safety and health training had been provided in Spanish. He was not a day laborer. He was working for his employer as a fulltime employee. He was at a construction site, installing a gutter on a one-story residential house. He was climbing an extension ladder to put a screw in the gutter. The ladder had been placed on dirt. It was not secured or held by a coworker. It had been extended to 24 ft (7.3 m). The employee was 12 ft (3.7 m) up, putting the screw in the gutter when the ladder started sinking to the right. The ladder and the employee both fell. employee suffered a fracture to his upper right leg. He was hospitalized. The employee's coworker was around when the ladder fell, but he couldn't stop it. The employee's supervisor wasn't at the site during the incident. The employer reported the incident to DOSH at 6:15 p. m. that same day. The employer called again the next day to verify that DOSH got the report. The employer complied with the reporting requirement. A CSHO went to site at 10 a.m. on April 8, 2021. No accident-related citations were issued.

Keywords: Broken Bone, Climbing on Ladder, Construction, Extension Ladder, Fall, Fall From Elevation, Falling Object, Fracture, Gutter, I2P2, Ladder, Language Barrier, Leg, Misjudgment, Misjudgment of Hazardous Situation, Residential Construction, Sheet Metal, Uneven Ground, Unstable Position, Unstable Soil, Unstable Surface