Inspection Detail

Inspection: 313511552 - Metro Express Inc

Inspection Information - Office: San Bernardino District Office

Investigation Summary

Prior to 4:36 p.m. on January 28, 2011, an employee was working for a courier company, performing pickups, drop-offs, and some selected repackaging of products for clients. He had picked up an order of approximately 1,300 lbs. of dry ice, in 26 packages containing five 10 lb. slabs, from the Ontario Ice & Cold Storage Co. in Ontario, CA. They were loaded into the back of the vehicle he was driving, a Ford Transit Connect bearing the employer's vehicle number 25. The vehicle had an enclosed cargo area separated from the driver compartment by only a metal partition screen. He was to transport the dry ice back to the employer's facility, which was approximately eight miles from Ontario Ice. He had driven for approximately 2.5 miles, when, for some reason, he turned off from the street on which he had been traveling, Holt Blvd., and onto Guasti Road. He pulled the vehicle to the curb, parked it, and turned on his hazard lights. According to Ontario Police, the vehicle was parked in this location with the engine running for approximately one hour before a passerby called for emergency medical technicians, at 4:36 p.m. Upon arriving at the site, members of the Ontario fire department found the driver non-responsive, noticed the dry ice in the cargo area, and called for a hazmat response team. The hazmat team put an oxygen meter into the vehicle and measured the oxygen level to be 17.3 units. There was no further information on the units being measured. The investigator from the coroner's office noted that the employee was cold, except for portions of his body in contact with the driver's seat. The employee was pronounced dead at the scene. His body was transported to the San Bernardino County sheriff's and coroner's facility in San Bernardino, CA.

Keywords: DELIVERY WORK, ENCLOSED SPACE, OXYGEN, EMERGENCY RESPONSE, DRIVER, CARBON DIOXIDE, FROZEN, TRUCK DRIVER