Inspection Detail

Inspection: 302464912 - North Carolina Department Of Corrections, Facility

Inspection Information - Office: Nc Department Of Labor - Winston-Salem

Investigation Summary

At approximately 9:45 a.m. on October 27, 1998, Employee #1, part of a road crew that consisted of seven other inmates and two armed guard, was picking up trash along Interstate 77 in Iredell County, NC. The clean-up operation started at milepost 33, where an orange traffic warning sign reading 'Inmates Working' in black lettering was placed on the right shoulder. A second orange sign reading 'Litter Pick Up In Progress' in black lettering was mounted on the back of the equipment trailer, which was being towed behind the workers. As the road crew neared milepost 32, a 1991 Peterbilt tractor, NC license #LY2180, pulling a 1974 Gindy 45 ft tandem-axle enclosed trailer full of wood chips was traveling at 65 mph in the southbound lane of I-77. The truck was approaching the work crew when the outer bearing on the right rear axle failed and the set of wheels and drum separated from it. The approximately 530 lb wheels rolled 408.5 ft across the emergency lane/shoulder of the road, over a drainage depression, and up the bank beside the road. The set of wheels then glanced off a tree stump, which diverted them back toward the southbound lanes of traffic. As the wheels crossed the shoulder of the highway, they struck Employee #1 in the back. The impact threw him into the air and he flipped over completely before landing on the shoulder of the highway. Emergency services responded and transported Employee #1 by ambulance to Lake Norman Regional Medical Center in Mooresville, NC, where he was pronounced dead due to multiple trauma. After striking Employee #1, the set of wheels continued into the median and rolled another 1,814 ft. They traveled a total distance of 2,222. 5 ft from the point of separation with the trailer.

Keywords: HIGHWAY, EQUIPMENT FAILURE, TRAILER TRUCK, BACK, BEARING, STRUCK BY, TRACTOR TRAILER, FLYING OBJECT