Sign installation crew foreman dies after 30-foot fall from upper catwalk of billboard.
Authors
Oklahoma State Department of Health
Source
Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 99OK001, 2000 Apr; :1-5
Abstract
A 30-year-old construction crew chief for a sign installation crew died after falling 30 feet from a billboard catwalk that was not equipped with standard guardrails. The victim and three co-workers were installing a new vinyl sign cover on an existing billboard. The crew was on the upper catwalk approximately 30 feet high, preparing to unfold the new vinyl sign down the front of the south side of the billboard. A gust of wind caught the vinyl sign as it was unfolded and threw it back onto the crew. The crew members were wearing harnesses with lanyards, but only one crew member was tied off. He had tied off to the billboard structural members. The victim was not tied off and the vinyl sign knocked him off balance. He fell from the catwalk into the billboard metal structure and onto the ground below. FACE investigators concluded that, to help prevent similar occurrences, employers should: 1. ensure that all exposed sides of catwalks/platforms are guarded by standard railings with toeboards; 2. ensure that employees follow the company's established fall protection policies and provide the necessary fall protection systems; and 3. implement routine inspections of the worksite to identify and correct potential hazards.
Keywords
Region-6; Accident-analysis; Accident-prevention; Accidents; Injuries; Injury-prevention; Traumatic-injuries; Work-operations; Work-analysis; Work-areas; Work-performance; Work-practices; Safety-education; Safety-equipment; Safety-measures; Safety-monitoring; Protective-measures; Personal-protective-equipment; Personal-protection; Protective-equipment
Document Type
Field Studies; Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation
Funding Type
Cooperative Agreement
NTIS Accession No.
PB2010-114203
Identifying No.
FACE-99OK001; Cooperative-Agreement-Number-U60-CCU-613938
Source Name
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Performing Organization
Oklahoma State Department of Health
