Inspection Detail

Inspection: 313078693 - Sure Steel Inc

Inspection Information - Office: Hi-E-Honolulu

Investigation Summary

On January 21, 2010, Employee #1, the foreman of a steel erection crew, was helping to install insulation and metal roof panels over beams and purlins they had previously erected. Employee #1 and his coworkers wore fall harnesses but they were not connected to a fall arrest system. Employee #1 was standing on a purlin at the lower edge of the roof to position a section of insulation/vapor barrier material that had just been laid out, when he fell between the purlin and the material approximately 22 feet to the concrete pad below. First aid responders found Employee #1 unconscious and not breathing, with a weak pulse and apparent skull fracture. He was taken by ambulance to Hilo Medical Center and was then flown to Queens Medical Center on Oahu, in critical condition and on life support. Employee #1 was declared dead on January 22, 2010. The autopsy found multiple skull fractures, swelling and bleeding of the brain, a fractured cervical vertebra and fractured right femur. Interviews with employer representatives and coworkers and documents provided by the employer, showed the employer had a written safety and health program that required fall protection at heights above six feet. Interviews and documents also showed that Employee #1 and the other crew members were experienced in steel erection and had been trained in February and March 2009 on fall protection and steel erection safety. The training did not cover the Hawaii state plan steel erection standard, which has stricter requirements for fall protection than the federal standard. The accident was reported on January 21, 2010 by Hawaii County Police. The accident investigation was opened on January 22, 2010.

Keywords: ELEC INSULATION, FRACTURE, UNCONSCIOUSNESS, SKULL, STEEL ERECTION, FALL, FALL PROTECTION, VERTEBRA, BRAIN, ROOF PANEL