Inspection Detail

Inspection: 308435908 - Walt'S Wrecker Service, Llc

Inspection Information - Office: Jacksonville Area Office

Investigation Summary

On January 17, 2006, Employee #1, a tow truck operator at a pier on a Navy base, was relocating a large metal roll-off vacuum container that weighed 10,100 lbs when empty. Normally, to relocate these containers, they were pulled onto the flatbed of a tow truck using a Ramsey winch (model no. 120090) that contained a 0.625 in. diameter plow steel wire rope mounted on the truck. On this particular occasion, due to obstructions on the pier, the employee could not park the tow truck so that it aligned with the container in order to pull it in a direct line onto the flatbed of the truck. To pull in the container Employee #1 used a tie-down assembly, consisting of a J hook (capacity of 5,400 lbs), a 0.375 in. diameter chain (working load limit of 2,650 lbs), and a grab hook (working load limit of 5 tons). The assembly was hooked onto on side of the flatbed. The winch wire rope was placed through the tie-down assembly, and then hooked onto the roll-off vacuum container. Placing the wire rope through the tie-down assembly allowed the winch to pull the container at an angle. Employee #1 moved from the tie-down assembly to the opposite side of the flatbed, where the controls were located. As he operated the controls and began pulling the container, the chain of the assembly failed due to overload. As it failed, the J hook was hurled from the assembly and struck the employee on the head. He was taken to a hospital, where he died due to his injuries on January 28, 2006.

Keywords: CHAIN, LOADING, HEAD, WIRE ROPE, MACHINE OPERATOR, STRUCK BY, TOW TRUCK, CONTAINERIZED CARGO, FLYING OBJECT, WINCH