Inspection Detail

Inspection: 309428431 - B & H Contracting Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Fort Lauderdale Area Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 7:30 p.m. on October 29, 2005, Employee #1, an excavator operator, was operating an Kobelco excavator (Model Number: SK330 LC Serial Number: YC07-U0760) at a hurricane tree collection site. He was stacking tree debris when the excavator tipped over, and he was crushed inside According to witnesses, Employee #1 was last observed by the site superintendent inside the excavator, on a pile of tree debris, which measured approximately 47 feet wide by 18 feet in height. According to the site superintendent, Employee #1 was stacking additional tree debris to continue building the pile higher. According to the site superintendent, the pile was being built to great heights due to the limited amount of space available to stock the incoming debris. As the excavator continued to build the debris at a higher distance from the ground, it tipped over from a height of approximately 22 feet and plunged upside down to ground level, crushing and pinning Employee #1 within the cabin. The excavator collided with a utility pole that was approximately 20 feet from the pile of the debris being stocked. The pole broke approximately one quarter of the way up from its base, and the overhead power line it supported fell on a metal perimeter fence, energizing it. This caused a delay in extracting Employee #1 from the excavator. Personnel from the local electric utility deenergized the downed line approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes after the accident occurred. Personnel from the local fire and emergency services crawled underneath the excavator and pronounced Employee #1 dead. A crane arrived on site at 8:00 a.m. the next day to lift the excavator and remove Employee #1.

Keywords: EXCAVATION, PINNED, WORK RULES, CRUSHED, EXCAVATOR