Inspection Detail

Inspection: 108564980 - Whirlpool Corporation

Inspection Information - Office: Indiana Department Of Labor

Investigation Summary

At approximately 7:55 p.m. on November 24, 1997, Employee #1 was working alone as a set-up man at the north end of component hookup #1 in building #3. He was cleaning conveyor chain guides on the second floor mezzanine and was 36 in. above the center of a 30 in. by 80 1/2 in. metal debris collection pan when he stepped onto the pan and fell through approximately 15 ft, striking a ceiling light fixture on the first floor and the protective conveyor aisle railing. First aid and CPR were administered to Employee #1, who was bleeding from the mouth, nose, ears, and right eye, and 911 was called. Approximately 30 minutes later, Employee #1 was transported by ambulance to Deaconess Hospital, where he died at 9:06 p.m., from a fractured skull and other blunt impact injuries to his head and chest. There were no witnesses to the accident, but coworkers arriving at scene saw the pan hanging down from the second floor. A police investigation checked the metal pan for fingerprints and other marks. A coworker stated that the north end of pan was attached by two #8/32 machine screws and a tack weld between the screws in the center and the end of the pan. The south end of pan had four sheet metal screws, but two of them had been pulled out. The coworker also said he saw the and east and west chains hanging down in-between the conveyor's top chain guides but still on their sprockets. These were the only two collection pans on this section of the conveyor line.

Keywords: FRACTURE, HEAD, CPR, UNSECURED, CLEANING, SKULL, FALL, SET UP, WORK SURFACE, LEG