Abstract: Two employees climbed into the loader bucket of a backhoe to put two pieces of plywood over a window to protect the glass. Each piece of plywood was 4 ft by 8 ft by 0.75 in. One employee was on the left side of the bucket and a coworker was on the right side of the bucket. The backhoe operator observed the two employees struggling and got out of the cab to assist them. When he did that, his body harness had become caught on the bucket controls and this caused the bucket to start to dump the employees and the plywood. The operator removed his harness then got back into the cab. He backed up the backhoe and dismounted to help. The employee, who was standing on the left, did not release the plywood and was crushed and killed when the top of the bucket made contact with his back, which then pushed him into the concrete building. The coworker, who was standing on the left, dropped the plywood and was not injured.