Inspection Detail

Inspection: 304618960 - Contractors Incorporated

Inspection Information - Office: Or-E-Portland - Safety 1 1054111

Investigation Summary

September 27, 2001, Employee #1 and a coworker were leveling a 48-inch-diameter pipe elbow that had been tack welded onto a 40-foot concrete-lined sewer pipe already situated in a sloped out trench approximately 15 feet deep. The elbow was facing up and propped up just above an 8-foot by 8-foot concrete slab with 4-inch by 4-inch wood shims under it. The elbow was tack welded with five welds about one inch wide spaced around the perimeter of the pipe. The perimeter of the concrete slab contained a vertical rebar frame about eight feet high that will later be covered with concrete and serve as the base of a new circular waste water treatment pond. Initially, the elbow was found to be about an inch out of level. The workers attached a 2-ton come-along between the top of the elbow and the bottom of the rebar to pull the elbow down into the proper position. As they applied pressure on the pipe with the come-along, the welds broke and the elbow fell over pinning Employee #1 between the elbow and the rebar frame, causing rib fractures and a punctured lung. Employee #1 was hospitalized to treat his injuries.

Keywords: FRACTURE, LUNG, REBAR, EQUIPMENT FAILURE, RIB, PIPE, FALLING OBJECT, PUNCTURE