Inspection Detail

Inspection: 301342523 - Alliance Tech Systems

Inspection Information - Office: Wichita Area Office

Investigation Summary

An employee was working on environmental and explosives cleanup at a former Army ammunition plant. The employee was cutting down a utility pole that was no longer needed. The employee finished the initial cut, and then began the final cut to fell the pole. Apparently, the chainsaw he was using became bound. The employee, who was working alone, apparently, tried to free the saw by pulling on the pole with a guy. The pole fell, striking the employee and knocking him unconscious. (There were no eyewitnesses to the accident.) He was found 9.1 to 9.7 meters away from the stump and approximately 0.9 meters from the felled pole. The chain saw was found in the general vicinity. The employee was taken to a hospital by an air ambulance service. The pole had crushed his hip and perforated his colon. The ambulance service and the hospital were unaware of that his colon had been perforated. An infection developed and the employee died some time later at the hospital, when the family removed him from life support systems.

Keywords: FRACTURE, DEMOLITION, CHAIN SAW, INFECTION, STRUCK BY, CONTUSION