Inspection Detail

Inspection: 109209544 - Tri-City Electrical Contractors, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Tampa Area Office

Investigation Summary

After lunch on November 30, 1998, Employee #1, working at a construction site for Tri-City, went to a trailer at the construction site to get some supplies needed for his afternoon work. He was to be working alone, so no one saw him for the rest of the afternoon. Approximately 15 minutes before the end of the workday, coworkers were told to clean up the site, pick up their tools, and lock up the trailers. Two coworkers approached the supply trailer, noticed the door had swung partially shut, and locked the door without looking inside. Meanwhile, a coworker friend of Employee #1, who had given him a ride to work, was searching for him to give him a ride home. He later stated that he had had a conversation earlier with Employee #1 that caused him to think that Employee #1 had perhaps left early. He signed Employee #1 out, then left the work site. The coworker stopped at Employee #1's home, knocked on the door, but got no answer. He returned later that evening and spoke with Employee #1's girlfriend, who said she had not seen Employee #1, but that she had left a message on the company's answering machine, alerting management to his absence. Work began at approximately 6:00 a.m. the next morning, by which time Employee #1's disappearance had become general knowledge. At about 8:00 a.m., a coworker went to the supply trailer and saw that the shelves had been knocked over. He did not want to clean up and repair the shelves alone, so he went and told the supervisor about the fallen shelves. The supervisor and another coworker went to the trailer to survey the damage, and found Employee #1's dead body. Apparently, he had been crushed and killed the previous day when the shelves tipped over on him.

Keywords: UNSECURED, WORK RULES, CONSTRUCTION, CRUSHED, STORAGE RACK, FALLING OBJECT, STORAGE AREA, OVERTURN