Accident: 14222640 - Killed In Fall Down Stairs

At approximately 11:45 a.m. on September 12, 2000, Employee #1 was on the third floor of a town home under construction showing a coworker how to install handrails on the stairs. He had been measuring the area where the handrails were to be installed and showing the coworker the area. As he was walking down, he stepped at the edge of a stair, lost his footing, and fell approximately 32 ft onto a concrete floor. The medical examiner's office gave the preliminary cause of death as multiple blunt trauma to the head.

construction, fall, handrail, stair, lost balance, head

Accident: 170167860 - Heels Broken In Fall When Railing Fails

Employee #1 was on an upper level balcony painting a ceiling. He was leaning against a railing that was not properly secured when the railing gave way. Employee #1 fell 10 ft to the concrete floor, fracturing both heels.

work rules, construction, unsecured, foot, painter, handrail, fall, fracture, collapse

Accident: 200030260 - Dies After Breaking Hip In Fall From Trailer Steps

Employee #1, age 72, fell approximately 3 ft to the ground from the top riser of a set of steps that led to the inside of a trailer that was used to store donated clothing. He fractured his hip and died the next day from complications while being prepared for surgery. The risers were not of uniform height and handrails were not provided.

fracture, fall, work surface, stair, handrail, hip, walking surface

Accident: 170621437 - Injured In Fall From Second-Story Balcony

Employee #1 was working for a deck-coating subcontractor at a retirement home project in Walnut Creek, CA. He was spraying the second-floor balcony deck when he leaned against the railing. One side of the railing apparently swung loose and Employee #1 fell about 9 ft to the ground. He sustained multiple injuries to his ribs, head, and face. At the time of the accident, Employee #1 was working alone at the job site.

construction, fall, rib, head, face, handrail, unsecured, spray painting

Accident: 201060175 - Injured In Fall Through Floor Opening

Employee #1, a journeyman steelworker, was standing on a scaffold platform under the second floor of a steel building structure, welding on an I-beam. He was wearing a safety harness and was tied off to a bridge clamp attached to the I-beam, as there were no handrails on the scaffold. Employee #1 left his work station to go on break. When he returned, he went over to the floor opening to climb back down to his work area by using the I-beam, which he later stated was the usual manner because there was no ladder. Employee #1 next remembered waking up in the hospital. Three coworkers saw him fall through the floor opening, bounce off the scaffold platform, and land on the ground some 18 ft below. Employee #1 sustained a fractured pelvis, left ribs, and left cheek bone. The employer was cited for accident-related violations of T8CCR 1632(b), serious, for floor openings; and of T8CCR 1637(n)(1), for scaffold access.

scaffold, handrail, floor opening, fall, fracture, pelvis, elevated work plat, face, work rules, unguarded fl opening

Accident: 201030228 - Injured In Fall From Elevated Work Stand

At approximately 4:20 a.m. on June 24, 1996, Employee #1 and coworkers were installing the main landing gear on plane #606 in Building 84. They were working from the platform of a main landing gear stand. The platform, located on the left side of the plane, ranged in height from 6 ft 11 in. to 7 ft 1 in. above the concrete floor. The workers first had to move the existing landing gear stand so that another could be used. Employee #1 was taking off the handrail posts so the stand would clear the flap hinge when he fell backward off the stand, fracturing his left hip. At the time of the accident, the guardrails were being removed and Employee #1 was using no alternate means of fall protection.

aircraft, handrail, dismantling, elevated work plat, fall, hip, fracture, fall protection, work rules, guardrail

Accident: 170733729 - Killed In Fall From Scaffold

At approximately 1:50 p.m. on April 15, 1996, Employee #1 and two coworkers were working inside an empty water reservoir in Hacienda Heights, CA. Employee #1 was on a rolling metal scaffold, using a crowbar and wood blocks to pry off roof rafters in preparation for blasting the underneath of the roof. According to the contractor, Employee #1 leaned against or bumped the top rail of the scaffold platform, causing it to dislodge at one end. He fell to the floor and was pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of this accident was the railings not being securely attached to the scaffold.

fall, mobile scaffold, elevated work plat, work rules, unsecured, fall protection, guardrail, handrail, water tank

Accident: 201150109 - Fingertip Amputated While Raising Ramp Rail

At approximately 5:15 a.m. on February 24, 1996, Employee #1, who worked for a freight handling company, was using a portable conveyor ramp to unload freight from the hold of an airplane. The ramp was equipped with collapsible railings on both sides. The ramp had been positioned and raised to the height of the plane. The railings were held upright by pins placed in holes in the frame. As Employee #1 raised one of the railings, his left little finger became entangled in the pivot point, amputating the tip. He underwent surgery to correct the damage.

off loading, ramp, finger, caught between, amputated, entangled, work rules, handrail