Inspection Detail

Inspection: 317249795 - Michael Carter Dba Titan Framing

Inspection Information - Office: Sacramento District Office

Investigation Summary

At 5:30 p.m. on March 12, 2014, Employee #1, a carpenter; Coworker #1, a foreman; and Coworker #2, a forklift operator, all employed by a carpentry contractor doing business as Titan Framing, were doing framing work to construct a garage at a residence. The front framed garage wall with a large header was lifted and set into place with the construction type all terrain forklift that Coworker #2 was operating. Employee #1 was sitting on the top of an existing side wall, and Coworker #1 was 24 feet away on the opposite side of the garage and holding the wall in place at ground level. Employee #1 placed one or two nails on his side into the top plate to connect the front wall to the side wall he was sitting on. Coworker #1, the foreman, then directed Coworker #2 to pull away the forklift. Coworker #1 let go of his side of the wall to grab more nails for his nail gun. As he took a step away from the wall, the wall started to fall. Coworker #1 tried to grab it, but the entire front garage wall fell to the ground. Employee #1, on the other side, was spun around as the wall he was sitting on shook. Employee #1 fell to the concrete slab floor of the garage, a fall height of 9 feet. As he landed, he was impaled on a .625-inch tall anchor bolt that became exposed when the front wall fell. Emergency services were called, and Employee #1 was transported to Mercy San Juan Hospital, admitted, and treated for a puncture wound to his back and bruising to internal organs. He remained hospitalized for four days. This event was reported to Cal/OSHA by the employer on March 13, 2014. The subsequent investigation determined that the employer was a residential home framing contractor. The investigation included interviews with Employee #1 and Coworker #1.

Keywords: INSTALLING, WALL, COLLAPSE, IMPALED, CARPENTER, CONSTRUCTION, BACK, FALL, FALL PROTECTION, PUNCTURE