Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1561360.015 - B & S Recycling, Llc

Inspection Information - Office: Mobile Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 9:30 a.m. on October 26, 2021, an employee was removing tires from scrap cars at a metal recycling scrap yard. Per the facility owner employer, the victim was not an "on the books employee," but someone that stops by the facility when he needs work and is paid "under the table." On the day of the incident the employee arrived on site to request work from the owner. Although the employee was directed to wait and not do anything else until the employer finished weighing scrap metal, the employee went out to the scrap yard and started removing tires from scrap vehicles. A crane operator in the scrap yard was moving vehicles being processed for recycling. Company policy is for employees to not approach within 250 feet of the crane while it is operating. The crane was marked with a sign stating "Stay back 250 feet," and signage on the yard entrance fence also stated "Heavy Equipment at Work, Enter at Own Risk." Additionally, the employee did not notify the employer where he was going and what he would be doing, and also did not alert the crane operator that he was in the area. When the crane operator saw the employee out of the corner of his eye, the operator immediately stopped the crane. Although the crane operator stated that the crane did not contact the employee, the employee did fall down, and it is possible but not confirmed that he was unknowingly struck by a car handled by the crane. The operator left the crane to assist the employee, notified the employer, and both the crane operator and employer assisted the employee by carrying him to the office in a chair. The employee called a friend to pick him up at the facility, and then the employee was taken to the hospital, where he was hospitalized to treat a fractured hip.

Keywords: Crane, Fall, Fall On Same Level, Fracture, Hip, Scrap Metal, Scrap Yard, Struck By, Unauthorized, Unauthorized Entry