Inspection Detail

Inspection: 300834306 - Lackey'S Welding & Construction

Inspection Information - Office: Van Nuys District Office

Investigation Summary

On June 6, 2006, Employee #1 was working with a crane operator, rigging steel trusses. The piece he was working on was an open web steel truss, 55-ft by 4.49-ft by 9-in. on top chord and 8-in. wide on bottom chord, with a weight of approximately 2,034 lbs. Employee #1 was using a 12-ft by 0.75-in. diameter steel wire rope sling with a mechanical spliced eye, which was provided by the crane company. He placed the eye of the sling through the 1-in. opening in the top chord of the truss, and attached a 0.875-in. pin shackle through the eye. This rigging was placed approximately 2.5-ft off center of the 55-ft long truss, measuring from the sling and shackle slipped through the top chord of the truss. Employee #1 walked to the right end of the truss and placed a tag line on the end diagonal brace of the truss. He signaled to the crane operator to "cable up" and started to lift the truss. Before the truss was lifted off the ground, Employee #1 signaled to him to stop. When the crane operator stopped, Employee #1 started to shake the rigged truss away from the other two trusses, which were attached in the bundle. The other two trusses fell over, away from the rigged truss, and then Employee #1 signaled to the crane operator to start the lift again. The crane operator lifted the truss off the ground about 4 feet, and noticed that only the right end was off of the ground. The crane operator stopped the lift and told Employee #1 that they needed to set the truss down and level it out. As Employee #1 started to pull down on the end of the truss to bring the other end up and level it out, the sling and shackle slipped through the top of the truss and the raised end of the truss fell on Employee #1, pinning him on the ground. The crane operator jumped out of the crane and ran over to Employee #1. A coworker came over to help. The crane operator ran back to the crane while the coworker went to the truss and rigged the sling, looping the sling around the top chord and attaching the shackle. Then the crane operator raised the truss until the coworker signaled him to stop. Emergency response was called, and the paramedics and ambulance arrived shortly after. Employee #1 was unresponsive, with no pulse. The paramedics administered CPR, along with medical drugs and a pulse was revived before he was transported to Antelope Valley Hospital, where he was hospitalized for two months. Employee #1 was diagnosed with severe brain and spinal cord injury. He was then transferred to an acute long term care facility.

Keywords: FRACTURE, RIGGING, TRUSS, STEEL, WIRE ROPE, SPINE, STRUCK BY, CRANE OPERATOR, VERTEBRA, BRAIN