Inspection Detail

Inspection: 311090898 - Marrow Steel Erectors, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Fort Lauderdale Area Office

Investigation Summary

On April 8, 2008, an employee was repositioning a section of metal decking on the roof of a building, when he fell through an opening approximately 3 feet by 5 feet wide, falling approximately 42 feet to the ground and died as a result of the injuries sustained from the fall. The employee was an apprentice iron worker and was not wearing his body harness, nor was there an anchor point to tie of to. The decking had been placed inverted on the roof to allow for more concrete to be poured so that the roof of the building would be able to handle the vibrations of the bio-waste processing plant. The section of decking where the employee fell was removed so that the joists could be inspected. The employee had been told that morning to put his safety harness on by his foreman. The crew went on break at approximately 9:30 a.m. and returned to work shortly thereafter. The foreman did not check on the employees to ensure that they were wearing their safety harnesses, nor did he inspect the roof area to ensure the cable line that was used as the tie off point was still in tact. The employees had removed the cable line which ran across that section of decking and did not have another anchor point to tie of too. The company had trained employees on fall protection and did provide them with body harnesses. Additionally, employees had been instructed on the proper use and wear of the body harnesses, and the proper points to tie off too. The company did have a written safety and health program and holds weekly safety meetings on site.

Keywords: FRACTURE, HEAD, ROOF, INEXPERIENCE, METAL DECKING, FALL, FALL PROTECTION, WORK SURFACE