Accident Report Detail

Accident Summary Nr: 201520350 - EMPLOYEES INJURED BY FALLING BOBCAT

Accident Summary Nr: 201520350 -- Report ID: 0111500 -- Event Date: 04/03/1998
Inspection Nr	Date Opened	SIC	NAICS	Establishment Name
123293722	04/07/1998	1795	0	Industrial Wrecking Inc

Abstract: On April 3, 1998, a second Bobcat (Model 751) machine was brought to the site to assist the already in use Bobcat Machine (Model 753). The Bobcat was placed on the third floor in preparation for that machine to clear that particular floor. At this point Employee #1, a laborer, was on the roof sweeping up while the operator, Employee #2, continued with the Bobcat on the fourth floor. Employee #2 called Employee #1 down to the fourth floor in order to lower the hydraulic attachment down to the third floor. Once on the third floor, Employee #1 had Employee #2 push the hammer attachment over near the opening where the Bobcat was brought onto the floor from the exterior. Employee #1 then reached out the opening, grabbed the hoisting cable from the crane, and secured the hammer to the cable with a metal cable sling. While Employee #1 was securing the hammer, Employee #2 of the Bobcat backed the machine up and slammed the bucket down on the floor in the process of parking it. Within seconds of the bucket slamming down, the floor let go. Employee #1 swung outside the building, four stories up, holding only to the hoist cable. Once Employee #1 lost his grip on the cable, he then grabbed the hammer unit but also lost his grip on that. According to Employee #1, his pant leg got caught and was briefly hanging upside down until the pant leg ripped. Employee #1 fell to the pavement driveway below landing hands and feet first. Employee #2, in an attempt to save the machine from falling, tried to turn the machine around, but failed. The machine ended up falling on top of the Bobcat on the third floor and then rear end first out of the building. Employee #1 saw the Bobcat coming towards him. He pulled himself out of harms, but the Bobcat landed rear end first and hit Employee #1's right foot and ankle. The fire department had to cut the Bobcat operator out of the Bobcat and transported each employee to the hospital. Each was treated for fractures. The company had been working at the job site for about a week and a half when the incident occurred.

Keywords: GUARDRAIL, COLLAPSE, FLOOR HOLE, FALL, FLOOR OPENING, STRUCK BY, BULLDOZER, CRANE OPERATOR, SWEEPER

Accident Details
End Use		Project Type		Project Cost	Stories	Non-building Height	Fatality
Multi-family dwelling		Demolition		$50,000 to $250,000	4

Employee Details
Employee #	Inspection Nr	Age	Sex	Degree of Injury	Nature of Injury	Occupation	Construction
1	123293722			Hospitalized injury	Fracture	Occupation not reported	Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Demolition Fatality Cause: Collapse of structure
2	123293722			Hospitalized injury	Fracture	Occupation not reported	Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Demolition Fatality Cause: Collapse of structure

Thank You for Visiting Our Website

You are exiting the Department of Labor's Web server.

The Department of Labor does not endorse, takes no responsibility for, and exercises no control over the linked organization or its views, or contents, nor does it vouch for the accuracy or accessibility of the information contained on the destination server. The Department of Labor also cannot authorize the use of copyrighted materials contained in linked Web sites. Users must request such authorization from the sponsor of the linked Web site. Thank you for visiting our site. Please click the button below to continue.