Inspection Detail

Inspection: 308701929 - Century Steel, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Nv-E-Las Vegas 0953220

Investigation Summary

On July 20, 2005, an employee and three coworkers were tasked to cut off and remove sections of two shear walls of rebar to elevation prior to installing forms and pouring concrete into the forms. As the employee and coworkers worked, they repositioned themselves by attaching a pelican hook onto a piece of rebar located on the backside of the wall and also hooking onto another piece of rebar using a lanyard with two pelican hooks. With two vertical pieces still left to be cut off in the section to be removed, the tie wires were cut and the coworkers descended to the ground while a forklift held up the section of the shear walls. The employee repositioned himself and cut off the second to the last piece of the Number 9 vertical rebar. The coworkers, having turned their heads away from the employee, during the cutting process, heard a noise, looked back at the employee and saw him fall 12 ft to the ground. The employee had cut the vertical rebar he had been attached to with his positioning device. The employee had also attached his lanyard to a horizontal piece of rebar, but as he began to fall, the horizontal piece bent downward and his lanyard hooks slid off. The employee was transported to a medical facility having sustained multiple fractures to his spine, head and face. At approximately 10:55 p.m. on August 25, while still in the hospital, the employee went into cardiac arrest. The life saving measures was attempted but he was pronounced dead at 11:18 p.m.

Keywords: CONCRETE FORM WORK, FRACTURE, SHEAR, WALL, REBAR, CONSTRUCTION, STEEL ERECTION, FALL, WORK SURFACE