UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Inspection Detail

Note: The following inspection has not been indicated as closed. Please be aware that the information shown may change, e.g. violations may be added or deleted. For open cases, in which a citation has been issued, the citation information may not be available for 5 days following receipt by the employer for Federal inspections or for 30 days following receipt by the employer for State inspections.

Inspection: 1583123.015 - Xcavators, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Jackson

Investigation Summary

At 6:30 a.m. on February 24, 2022, an employee was working as a driver for a con struction firm that built highways. bridges, and structures. He drove heavy truc ks. While inspecting a tri-axle dump truck before leaving the yard, he discovere d two lights not working on the rear left of the dump bed. One was at a lower po sition, and the other was approximately 9 feet (2.7 meters) from the ground. He pulled the truck inside the shop and raised the dump bed slightly to lower the l ight to 8 feet (2.4 meters) from the floor. Another truck driver came to assist the employee with the lower light, while the employee started to work on the upp er light. The other truck driver left to get cutters to cut a zip tie on the low er light. He had tried needle-nose pliers but could not cut the zip tie with the m. When he returned, he found the employee on the floor bleeding from his head. The employee had fallen and struck the rear of his head on a concrete surface. H e suffered a skull fracture. He was hospitalized, but he died from his injuries. It was thought that the employee was on the folding ladder trying to break the zip tie with the needle-nose pliers. When the zip tie was broken, the force of t he break caused him to fall backward from the ladder to the floor. The electrica l tie was found broken or cut but still wrapped around the original bad light. A n erect standing Werner 6-foot (1.8-meter) single-sided folding stepladder was n ear the back left side of the truck. A pair of needle-nose pliers was on the flo or. The zip tie that was still on the light had been cut. The work floor was in good condition. No workers observed the employee on the folding ladder. It was a common practice for operators to replace the lights and use the folding ladder to reach the upper light. The operator would stand on the second rung of the lad der at a height of 2 feet (0.6 meters) to complete this work. Workers interviewe d stated that they did not have any issues when they used the folding ladder.

Keywords:climbing on ladder, construction, construction vehicle, driver, dump truck, fall, fall from elevation, fracture, head, inspection, ladder, maintenance, skull, stepladder, struck against, truck driver, working alone