Inspection Detail

Inspection: 302929476 - Broyhill Furniture Industries Inc. Conover Plant

Inspection Information - Office: Nc Department Of Labor - Winston-Salem

Investigation Summary

At 5:10 p.m. on October 5, 1999, Employee #1, of the Broyhill Furniture Industries, Inc., left work after putting in his regular shift plus some overtime. On his way home, he became ill and needed help to get from his truck to inside his home. The following day, he was admitted to Frye Regional Medical Hospital, where he died on October 9, 1999 due to complications from a ruptured abdominal viscus. His spouse later called the company and reported that he had told her he injured himself while lifting something either on his last day of work or in the days before. On October 19, 1999, the safety manager for Broyhill, reported the death as a possible work-related fatality. At the time, the company had not been able to document that any accident or injury had been reported by Employee #1 to his supervisor or to coworkers. The company also looked into the jobs performed by Employee #1 in the days before he became ill without finding evidence of any lifting. The CSHO conducting the investigation observed the work Employee #1 reportedly had performed and talked to coworkers and management. It found no evidence of an accident or injury being reported to coworkers, nor any work done by Employee #1 that involved heavy lifting.

Keywords: ABDOMEN, RUPTURE, MANUAL MAT HANDLING