Accident: 120126370 - Fingers Amputated In Lawn Mower

At approximately 8:15 a.m. on October 21, 1999, Employee #1 a landscape maintenance technician employed by Stalcup Landscape Innovations, Inc., was working at the Pine Summit Christian Center in Big Bear Lake, CA. He was adjusting the blade height and mower deck housing while the lawn mower engine was in operation, amputating the first digits of the middle and ring fingers on his left hand. Employee #1 was transported by private vehicle to the Bear Valley Community Hospital, where he was treated and released.

Keywords: lawn mower, amputated, finger, struck against, work rules, maintenance

Accident: 170195465 - Injured When Lawn Mower Crashes Into Ditch

On May 7, 1999, Employee #1, a 20-year-old maintenance man who operated a recreation area on a lake, was driving a riding lawn mower down a paved road. The brakes and transmission failed and the mower went out of control and free wheeled. Employee #1 crashed into a small, rocky ditch, fracturing his neck.

Keywords: fall, lost control, fracture, work rules, brake, lawn mower, equipment failure, neck, engine

Accident: 813592 - Drowned When Pinned By Overturned Lawnmower

At approximately 9:45 a.m. on June 1, 1998, Employee #1 and two coworkers were mowing the rough portion of a new golf course. Employee #1 told them he had to return to the shop building to make a personal phone call, and he drove his Toro 345 Groundsmaster mower off to the north on a gravel cart path. He was descending a moderate hill between the fourth and fifth tees when the rear wheels of the mower lifted off the ground and he lost control of it. The 72 in. mover deck was in the raised position although the operating manual stated that the deck must be lowered when descending a slope. At the bottom of the hill to the west was a ravine and a culvert passed under the cart path. The mower went off the west edge of the path, rolled over, and pinned Employee #1 underneath it. He was thrown, face down, in a shallow pool of water and drowned. The 1989 model mower was not equipped with ROPS, a seat belt, or optional rear counterweights; if it had been, this accident may have been prevented.

Keywords: lawn mower, slope, lost control, roll-over, pinned, counterbalance, drown, work rules, rops, seat belt

Accident: 170389092 - Killed When Lawn Tractor Overturns On Slope

Employee #1, who was working along a road for the Department of Transportation, was using a tractor to mow grass on a slope by the road when he failed to see a concrete culvert. The tractor rolled over the culvert and overturned. Employee #1 was ejected and landed under the ROPS. He sustained crushing injuries to his skull, and was killed.

Keywords: lawn mower, roll-over, slope, construction, rops, ejected, inattention, skull, seat belt, work rules

Accident: 200610087 - Killed When Run Over By Tractor Mower

Employee #1 was mowing the field edges with a Massey-Ferguson tractor, model 230, equipped with a three-point hitch and an attached sidewinder Brush Hog, model SW-72. He was mowing in either first or third gear for low range. The right front wheel of the tractor apparently struck a small knoll that rose about 32 1/2 in. over a 5 ft run, and possibly a small log that was located just over the crest of the knoll. Employee #1 was apparently ejected from the tractor and then run over by it and the Brush Hog. He was killed. The tractor was equipped with a ROPS designed specifically for the tractor, but only the right side, which contained the male portion of the buckle assembly, had a seat belt. That section of belt was clipped to an eyebolt. There was no corresponding belt and/or female component on the left side.

Keywords: tractor, lawn mower, struck against, uneven ground, run over, work rules, ejected, rops, agriculture, seat belt