Inspection Detail

Inspection: 309409779 - Las Vegas Floral Designers, Inc.

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

Investigation Summary

On December 29, 2005, Employees #1, #2, and #3 were decorating a temporary wall with plants at the MGM Conference Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The wall was built of the floor platforms, which were connected by C-clamps and 2-in. by 6-in. pieces of lumber. The platforms, when connected, were 11 ft high, 44 ft long, and 2 ft deep. The temporary wall was anchored by six 45-lb plates on six legs for a total weight of 1,620 lb. There were approximately 750 plants, which weighed approximately 1.8 lb each, for a total weight of 1,350 lb. The wall began to collapse from the right side and pulled the entire wall down. Employees #1, #2, and #3 were working on the left side of the wall and did not have time to move. The wall fell on top of Employee #1, the owner of Las Vegas Floral Design, and trapped her under. Employee #1 fractured her back, and she was hospitalized. Employees #2 and #3 were working from a scissor lift when the wall fell. The wall hit the scissor lift causing it to fall over, ejecting Employees #2 and #3 from the lift. Employees #2 and #3 fractured their arms, and they were hospitalized. There were no other types of anchorage systems used to secure the wall, other than the weights used on the back side of the temporary wall.

Keywords: WALL, UNSECURED, LUMBER, AERIAL LIFT, PLATFORM, FRACTURE, COLLAPSE, BACK, ARM, FALLING OBJECT