Accident: 201110525 - Two Injured When Tow Hook Fails
On July 19, 1997, Employees #1 and #2 were riding on the bed of a loaded F-700 flatbed truck at a pipeline project. A Caterpillar D-9 bulldozer was towing the truck up a very steep grade The truck had factory-installed tow hooks, and slings connected the hooks to the dozer. In addition to Employees #1 and #2, the truck was also carrying between 200 and 250, 4 by 6 skids, each of which weighed approximately 20 lb. The dozer had pulled the truck about 250 ft uphill when the hook on the passenger side broke loose, causing the truck to overturn and roll down the hill. Both Employees were thrown off the bed of the truck. They were taken to Henry Mayo Hospital suffering from internal injuries and contusions.
bulldozer, flatbed truck, overturn, towed equipment, equipment failure, contusion, construction, attachment hook, steep grade, fall
Accident: 201030608 - Injured When Struck By Falling Pipe On Oil Rig
On March 14, 1997, Employee #1 and four coworkers, of a oil well servicing company, were at a work site. Employee #1 was a crew worker; his coworkers were the rig supervisor, the operator, and two floorhands. They were drilling a horizontal well using a production rig with sub-base and a power-driven rotary table. Each pipe was 60 ft long and they had already made 12 connections. They had drilled down 720 ft and were making a connection at the time of the accident to drill down another 60 ft. Employee #1 and the two floorhands pulled the kelly from the rotary table for the next connection. While pushing the kelly, swivel, elevator, bail, and block to the rathole, the elevator struck the standing pipes. After pushing the kelly into the rathole, Employee #1 went to the edge of the platform on the side of the rathole. One coworker was between the drill pipes and the circular table and another was at the other edge of the platform, on the side where the drill pipes were located. The operator was lowering the kelly into the rathole when the when the load fell and the 400 lb bale attached to the block struck Employee #1 on the shoulder. He sustained serious injuries in his shoulder, including torn ligaments and an indentation of his clavicle. The main cause of this accident was the equipment attached to the travelling block hook not being securely fastened. At the time of the incident, the supervisor had gone to the doghouse and was not on the rig floor. The operator was at the controls of the rig platform, and did not witness the accident.
oil well servicing, falling object, struck by, shoulder, unsecured, work rules, oil rig, travelling block, attachment hook
Accident: 201110293 - Toes Fractured When Tank Falls On Foot
On January 16, 1997, Employee #1, a compounder with Banner Pharmacaps, was hoisting an approximately 440 lb mixing tank that needed to be cleaned and to have a drain valves installed on the bottom. He attached the hoist hook to a lifting "ear" on one side of the tank to tilt it, but the tank became disengaged and fell on his foot, fracturing three toes. Employee #1 was taken to Encino/Tarzana Medical Center for emergency treatment, and subsequently underwent surgery. At the time of the accident, this method of tilting tanks with a hoist hook was a common practice.
foot, struck by, fall, tank, toe, fracture, hoist, attachment hook, unsecured
Accident: 200750099 - Killed When Struck By Overhead Door
Employee #1 was standing on a raised skid on the tines of a forklift. He was using a 6 ft long metal rod to unhook a metal garage door from above when the door fell, striking him on the chest. Employee #1 was crushed and killed.
industrial truck, door, struck by, falling object, chest, crushed, work rules, unsecured, attachment hook
Accident: 200810133 - Killed When Pinned Between Tail Bearing And Motor
Employee #1 and two coworkers were changing the tail bearing on a pump jack. They had lowered the equalizer arm and removed and replaced the tail bearing. The pump jack operator then began to raise the equalizer arm with the tail bearing attached. The arm was raised vertically as far as possible, but the tail bearing was not aligned correctly. Employee #1 had climbed on top of the gear box to manually align it when the chain supporting the right side of the equalizer came loose. The arm started to fall backward toward Employee #1, and he grabbed hold of the tail bearing and rode the arm down. He became pinned between the tail bearing and the electric motor, and was killed. While aligning the tail bearing, Employee #1 apparently applied force to one side of the arm, releasing tension on the other side and causing the chain to come undone from the hook. The hook did not have a safety latch or similar securing device, and it may have been resting on the edge of the arm, pushing the chain partially out of the hook. The chain was also rotating around the arm as it was lifted.
oil well servicing, work rules, unsecured, caught between, maintenance, chain, pinned, safety latch, fall, attachment hook
