Accident: 201090669 - Foot Injured Between Curb And Lift Truck

At 10:00 a.m. on February 11, 1997, Employee #1, of Paramount Farms, was operating a Raymond forklift, model 640- 040TT, serial #640-96-07451. She was moving a trash bin down an inclined ramp when the speed of the forklift increased dramatically. Employee #1 panicked and took her foot off the operation pedal, causing the forklift to stop abruptly. The machine turned and struck the concrete abutment and railing, trapping her foot between the vehicle and the abutment. Employee #1 sustained a serious injury to her lower left foot.

agriculture, industrial truck, ind trk operator, lost control, struck against, foot, caught between, slope, ramp, accelerator pedal

Accident: 170886519 - Injured When Pinned Between Vehicle And Wall

At approximately 3:00 p.m. on January 6, 1997, a coworker arrived at the service area to store and charge an electric vehicle. While parking it, the coworker saw Employee #1 standing near the building door. The coworker exited the vehicle on the driver's side, placed the electrical cord and outlet box on the floor of the driver's side, and closed the door. Employee #1 walked to other side of vehicle, opened the passenger side door, and retrieved the battery charger from near the compactor. While she was lifting the charger into the vehicle, the coworker and Employee #1 had a brief conversation. Employee #1 then walked in front of the vehicle while the coworker tried to put the charger on the floor of the passenger side. The charger either slipped or fell out of the coworker's hands. It landed on the accelerator pedal, moving the vehicle forward approximately 1 to 2 ft. Employee #1's right leg was pinned against the wall; her left leg was struck by the front end of the vehicle, and she was knocked to the ground. The coworker pulled the vehicle off her and notified 911. The accident was the result of the driver's failure to properly position the operating controls on the electrical vehicle. The coworker had received inadequate training regarding the safe operation of the electrical vehicle and battery charger, and no operations manual was provided for training employees. The employer was cited for violations of T8CCR 5185(g), for allowing smoking in a designated battery charging area; of T8CCR 5185(e), for not protecting the battery charger from damage by mobile equipment; of T8CCR 2510.58(b), for missing grounding pin from battery charger; of T8CCR 3702(b), for an inoperable horn on the electrical vehicle and missing directional selector name plate; and T8CCR 5185(j), for mobile equipment controls not being properly positioned.

pinned, motor vehicle, struck by, accelerator pedal, lost control, leg, unmanned, work rules, untrained, vehicle in gear

Accident: 170872303 - Leg Fractured When Pinned Against Truck

At 11:00 a.m. on November 21, 1996, Employee #1 was purchasing food from a catering truck at the W. M. Bolthouse Farms Facility, Bakersfield, CA. The truck was parked between the productions and engineering trailers, south of the short cut to the north facility. Nearby, a coworker was driving a club golf cart, ID #4, when the accelerator became stuck. The operator tried unsuccessfully to stop the vehicle by applying the brakes. The cart went forward and pinned Employee #1 against the catering truck. She sustained a fractured left leg.

golf cart, accelerator pedal, stuck, pinned, caught between, fracture, leg, traffic accident, agriculture, mech malfunction

Accident: 201760030 - Killed When Struck By Motor Vehicle In Spray Pit

At approximately 1:20 p.m. on August 13, 1996, Employee #1 was in pit #2, spraying a coating on vehicle undercarriages. The last vehicle that came into pit #2 was a 1996 Landcruiser, serial #JT3HJ85J2T0146179. A coworker was driving the Landcruiser from the buffer area to the fabric Scotchguarding station before going to the undercoating pit. When the Landcruiser was started up, the accelerator became stuck and the vehicle shot out of the buffer area, through the fabric Scotchguarding section, and into undercoating pit #2. The Landcruiser missed the tire ramps and skidded into Employee #1, who was standing on a small walk platform. He was pinned against the concrete wall of the pit and sustained crushing chest injuries. Employee #1 was killed.

motor vehicle, accelerator pedal, stuck, lost control, struck by, pinned, chest, crushed, mech malfunction, vehicle

Accident: 170060800 - Killed When Caught Between Forklift And Door

Employee #1 and coworkers were cleaning a production line on the third shift. Employee #1 was using a sit-down model electric forklift to transport two cardboard boxes containing miscellaneous scrap to a remote trash compactor outside of the building. He apparently backed the forklift to a roll-up door that led to the trash compactor keeping the forklift in reverse. He then apparently reached behind the forklift with his left hand to grasp the door latch. As he did this, his head came between the inside of the door and the forklift's back vertical overhead guard support. Employee #1 apparently pressed the accelerator by mistake and the forklift moved backward, catching his head and killing him.

industrial truck, inattention, accelerator pedal, backing up, overhead guard, door, caught between, work rules

Accident: 14487193 - Crushed And Killed Between Backhoe Cab And Seat

Employee #1 was using a Thomas, model BH 108, backhoe to break up the ground for paving. The employee had moved the backhoe to a new location while sitting in the back seat. As he was getting out from the back seat to get into the front seat to operate backhoe, his foot slipped and activated the left pedal that moves the frame, including the stabilizers, backhoe, and front seat. Boom arm lock bars were not installed on the backhoe to prevent the frame from rising. Employee #1 was crushed and killed between the cab and the back of the seat.

construction, road paving, backhoe, foot, slip, accelerator pedal, caught between, crushed, unguarded

Accident: 1001718 - Killed Between Forklift And Semi Trailer Rig

Employee #1 got between a forklift and the rig of a semi-trailer to hold a load of material that had shifted. He told the forklift driver to push against the load while he held it in place. As the forklift driver began to push, the accelerator pedal became stuck, causing the forklift to pin Employee #1 against the semi-trailer rig. He was crushed and killed.

industrial truck, accelerator pedal, stuck, struck by, caught between, tractor trailer, crushed, mech malfunction, work rules, load shift

Accident: 14305338 - Crushed Between Truck Crane And Trailer

EMPLOYEE#1 WAS STANDING BETWEEN A TRAILER, LOADED WITH A ROCK CRUSHER CONE, AND A GROVE RT 605 CRANE. THE CRANE WAS MOVING FORWARD, TOWARDS THE TRAILER. THE CRANE OPERATOR WAS BEING DIRECTED BY ANOTHER EMPLOYEE. WHEN THE CRANE OPERATOR OBSERVED MOVEMENT TO HIS RIGHT, HE ATTEMPTED TO STOP THE CRANE. HE ACCIDENTLY STEPPED ON THE ACCELERATOR INSTEAD OF THE BRAKE. THE CRANE JUMPED FORWARD, CRUSHING THE EMPLOYEE.

crushed, trailer, crane, truck crane, accelerator pedal, brake

Accident: 14306377 - Strangulation

THE EMPLOYEE WAS FOUND SEATED IN A GOLF CART PINNED BETWEEN THE SEAT AND A HORIZONTAL RAIL. THE RAIL STRUCK HIM AT THE NECK AND UPPER CHEST LEVEL. THE ELECTRIC ACCELERATING PEDAL WAS FOUND STUCK IN THE LOWEST POSITION, WHICH WAS GIVING FULL FORWARD THRUST TO THE GOLF CART. THE PEDAL WAS NOT PROPERLY MAINTAINED, SINCE IT HAD A HISTORY OF STICKING. IT ALSO STUCK ON THE PREVIOUS SHIFT. WORKERS REGULARLY USED THE GOLF CART FOR TRANSPORTATION IN THE WAREHOUSE.

golf cart, accelerator pedal, stuck, rail, struck by, neck, chest, strangulated

Inspection Age Sex Degree Nature Occupation 1 1003623 61 M Fatality Bruise/Contus/Abras Occupation not reported