Inspection Detail

Inspection: 119820801 - C W Poss

Inspection Information - Office: Monrovia District Office

Investigation Summary

At 12:30 p.m. on January 21, 2002, an occupational fatality occurred at the F.C.I. construction site in Claremont, California. Employee #1 was an experienced rock truck driver. Employee #1 had a California Class "A" drivers license and had been working at this location since October 21, 2001. Employee #1 was operating a 50-ton Caterpillar Model 773B rock truck, Serial Number 63W01043. Prior to the accident, Employee #2 went to the dump site to investigate a complaint that the trucks were dumping in the wrong area. Employee #2 directed the drivers to dump on the west side of the pad. Employee #2 said he warned Employee #1 that he was getting too close to the edge. It was about 50 or 60 feet from the top of the site to the bottom. Employee #2 said he looked where Employee #1 had dumped and he saw that the berm was pushed back, causing the ground to sink. About 5 minutes later Employee #1 returned to dump another load. Employee #2 stopped him about 7 or 8 feet in front of the berm to allow a 980 loader operator, Employee #5, to remove a big rock below the dump site. When Employee #5 was finished, Employee #2 said he signaled Employee #1 to dump his load by giving a thumbs up or a spinning motion with his arm. Employee #2 said he turned away to see if any other trucks were coming. He heard the engine rev up, then Employee #4 yelled on the radio that the truck was going over. Employee #2 said he saw the back end of the truck was sinking. Employee #2 said he tried to wave off Employee #1 and have him pull forward, but the truck continued to fall backwards. Employee #5, working at the bottom of the hill, saw the truck backing up and then it slid off the top of the hill and continued to slide backwards very slowly. Then about half way down it flipped over. The truck came to rest upside down with the cab facing the bottom of the hill. Employee #4 said he saw Employee #2 stop Employee #1 so Employee #5 could remove the big rock. The he saw Employee #2 direct Employee #1 to back up and stopped him again. Employee #4 said the truck operated by Employee #1 began backing up again. Employee #4 said Employee #1 had still not raised his dump bed. Employee #4 used the radio to alert Employee #2 that the truck was going over the edge. Employee #4 said he knew the truck was going over because he saw the hill start to give way. Employee #3 was also working down below and said he saw Employee #2 waving his hands and at the same time saw the truck wheels start to sink, and he knew then that the truck Employee #1 was operating was going over. Employee #3 drove his backhoe over to the overturned truck and was working with Employees #2 and #5 to get Employee #1 out of the truck. Employee #1 was still strapped in his seat. Employees #3 and #5 supported the body of Employee #1 while Employee #2 used a knife to cut the seat belt. When they got him out of the truck, they noticed he had a big bump on his head and that he was breathing but gasping. They waited for the paramedics. Employee #1 was air lifted to Long Beach Memorial Hospital were an emergency craniotomy was performed. Employee #1 remained in the Long Beach Memorial Hospital until his death on January 26, 2002.

Keywords: HEAD, ROLL-OVER, CONSTRUCTION, DUMP TRUCK, CONCUSSION, OVERTURN