Inspection Detail

Inspection: 316431162 - Southern Management Corporation

Inspection Information - Office: Department Of Labor, Licensing, And Regulation Division Of Labor And Industry Maryland Occupational Safety And Health

Investigation Summary

On February 13, 2012, Employee #1 was riding on the shuttle portion of a vertical reciprocating conveyor within an automated parking garage, when the front rollers of the shuttle came off its operational track, and fell approximately nine feet to a lower level. Examination of the concrete rails found that they lacked physical barrier stops at the end of each rail, to prevent the shuttle from riding off the rails. The only thing preventing the shuttle from riding off the end of the rails was an electric limit switch. When the shuttle was operated in emergency mode, as it was at the time of this accident, this limit switch was electro-mechanically bypassed, and employees must be careful not to drive the shuttle off the end of the rails. Physical barrier stops were not installed in conjunction with electrical limit switches, in the event that the electrical or mechanical device failed. When the shuttle came off the rails, the rear of the shuttle, where the operator was standing, flipped forward and catapulted Employee #1 forward approximately 20 feet. Employee #1 then fell approximately 20 feet down a shaft onto a concrete runway, where he struck his head. Employee #1 was unresponsive, and was transported to St. Joseph's Hospital in Baltimore, where he died a short time later.

Keywords: FRACTURE, HEAD, MAINTENANCE, RAIL, CONVEYOR, FALL, LIMIT SWITCH