Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 001 Hazard: CRUSHING

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees in that employees were exposed to the hazard(s) of being struck-by or crushed when working in close proximity of paving equipment: a) in that the back half of the track guard/fender for the street side leg of the paver was missing, as observed on or about 12-27-05 and 01-09-06. The guards/fenders, both front and back, extend several inches past the end of the track itself. This additional distance would prevent employees from getting that much closer to the tracks which would also provide more time for an employee to respond and move in the event the unit began to travel. b) for the employees working on or around equipment such as, but not limited to, concrete slip-form pavers. On or about December 27, 2005 while working in the Country Walk sub-division near Wesley Chapel in Pasco County Florida, an employee was struck, then crushed, when his foot got caught under the track of a Gomaco GT-6200 slip-form paver. On this date, the equipment was being moved in the reverse direction to align the slip-form with the previous day's work. Unbeknownst to the operator, an employee was in a blind-spot (behind the wheel-house) when the equipment was put in gear, trapping the employee's foot under the track preventing him from escaping the path of travel. The equipment continued to track over the employee resulting in fatal, internal injuries. The area around the equipment had not been "cleared" prior to being put in gear. Abatement Note(s): Feasible means of abatement include, but may not be limited to, the following: 1. Establish and implement a formal training program which follows the manufacturer's operating instructions: This includes the physical search and clearance of all blind spots. Training must be in the language that employees can fully understand. 2. Ensure employees have a copy of the manufacturer's operator's manual on each paver. 3. Ensuring that before operations begin, that all fenders/guards designed for the unit are in place. 4. Installation of a parabolic mirror(s) which provide operators a view of the equipment's blind-spots.