Inspection Detail

Inspection: 316197300 - Kempf Contracting Inc

Inspection Information - Office: Sc Department Of Labor, Licensing, And Regulation

Investigation Summary

At approximately 7:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 26, 2011, five employees arrived at a work site. No other contractors were on site. The lead employee dropped off two employees in the infield of the track, and he instructed them to remove the "word concrete forms". They were provided hammers and pry bars. A hammer drill was available for use in a storage/equipment container. Two other employees were dropped off at the top of the track and instructed to remove braces from the wall forms. The lead employee went to get a forklift to help remove wall form braces and stopped to check in with the first two employees on his return trip. The company had employees trained and certified to operate forklifts, the only equipment they used. However, the first two employees were not authorized to use any equipment. One of the first two employees decided to use a Case Backhoe (Model Number 580L; Identification Number JJGO238101) owned by another company on site to remove the concrete that had overflowed the forms. He had a key that fit this piece of equipment from a previous jobsite. The other employee, Employee #1, motioned for the employee in the backhoe to position the backhoe arm to remove concrete. The employee operating the backhoe turned around in the seat, and his left foot hit a control that caused the bucket to swing to the left. Employee #1 was pinned against the outrigger stabilizer arm that was still in the up position, and he was killed. The lead employee was not aware that the backhoe was in use and had no visual contact from his working position. No violations of OSHA standards were identified, and no citations were issued.

Keywords: SIGNALMAN, PINNED, CONSTRUCTION, STRUCK BY, UNTRAINED, BACKHOE