Inspection Detail

Inspection: 308434711 - Nassau Terminals, Llc

Inspection Information - Office: Jacksonville Area Office

Investigation Summary

Employee #1 was a member of a stevedoring gang who were loading paper rolls onto a motor vessel. Each roll of paper was 58-in. in diameter, 89-in. long, and the average weight was approximately 6,100 pounds. The ship's crane was being used to hoist the drafts. Each draft consisted of two rolls of paper. Employee #1 and two coworkers were working in hold Number 2 of the ship. The drafts were lowered into the hold where the employees would position them. The rolls were laid on their side. When the stored rolls reached the opening of the hold, the crane operator would use a suspended load to "slap" them. To "slap" the rolls was a process where the crane operator swung suspended rolls (approximately 18-in. above the deck) into the rolls that had already been stored or placed. The force of the swinging rolls forced the stored rolls to be pushed together more tightly so that more room would be created for additional rolls. The crane operator was going to "slap" the paper, and the gang leader in the hold told Employee #1 to move to a safe location under the deck. However, the gang leader did not ensure that Employee #1 moved. The crane operator was signaled to "slap" the rolls, and the gang leader and the other employee were looking upward from the hold, and did not see that Employee #1 was in the area that was to be "slapped" or struck by the suspended load. When they noticed Employee #1, they yelled for him to move. As Employee #1 was moving, the swinging load struck him, and crushed him against the stored paper rolls. Employee #1 suffered injuries from the blunt impact to his torso which resulted in pelvic fractures, a lacerated bladder, and other injuries. Employee #1 was taken to a hospital where he died from his injuries.

Keywords: LONGSHORING, FRACTURE, SUSPENDED LOAD, TORSO, CRUSHED, LACERATION, PELVIS, BLADDER, STRUCK BY, CRANE