Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1559943.015 - Brightview Landscaping Services, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Tampa Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 8:40 a.m. on October 16, 2021, an employee was trimming hedges from an A-frame ladder using a powered hedge trimmer. The employee was working on a crew performing paid volunteer work on a Saturday as a temporary worker through a staffing agency. Although the employee was trimming hedges, supervision had assigned him to pick up trimming debris from the ground and not trim bushes. The A-frame ladder was placed sideways not facing the hedges and on sloped ground with an about 15-degree decline. While the employee was trimming hedges from the ladder, the ladder tipped over sideways causing the employee to fall to the ground. The employee contacted the hedge trimmer when he fell, resulting in a fracture, laceration, and amputation of his left-hand pinky finger. The employee was hospitalized. The supervisor was not present in the area the crew was working at the time of the incident. Although the employee was not assigned to trim hedges the day of the incident, he stated that he was an experienced operator with trimmers from a previous job.

Keywords: Amputated, Amputation, Climbing on Ladder, Fall, Finger, Fracture, Insufficient Supervision, Ladder, Landscaper, Landscaping, Portable Power Tool, Tree Trimming, Unauthorized, Unstable Position, Unstable Surface