Abstract
On a winter day in 2008, a male roofer/ foreman died after falling from a telescopic boom lift. He and four other roofing crew members were installing a new roof at a residence undergoing restoration. They had arrived at the job site at approximately 7:45 AM.
At approximately 8:00 AM, the foreman and two roofers were installing flashing on the roof of an alcove on the south side of the house while two other roofers were in a pickup truck putting on coveralls. The crew on the roof needed red rosin underlayment (paper) which was in the pickup truck. Using a telescopic boom lift, the foreman, who was not wearing a personal fall arrest system and not tied off, descended to the ground to retrieve the red rosin paper from the pickup truck. He spoke to the two roofers in the truck, retrieved the paper, and returned to the telescopic boom lift. Access to the bucket of the telescopic boom lift was opposite from the control panel. He began his ascent in the telescopic boom lift with the red rosin paper, and was not wearing a personal fall arrest system, nor was he tied off. It is unclear if the access gate to the bucket of the telescopic boom lift was open or closed. When he reached a height of approximately 10 feet, he fell out of the telescopic boom lift platform to the ground.
Emergency medical services were immediately contacted. Upon their arrival, an ambulance transported the foreman to the nearest hospital. From there he was transferred to the nearest trauma hospital where he died from his injuries at 3:41 PM.
To prevent future occurrences of similar incidents, the following recommendations have been made:
Recommendation No. 1: Employers should provide safety training on personal fall protection and have a written safety policy outlining safety practices and procedures, and which state the consequences of not following company policies.
Recommendation No. 2: Employers should train employees how to recognize telescopic boom equipment malfunctions and to immediately cease use.
Recommendation No. 3: When using mobile equipment, operators should perform walk-around inspections, and check and verify maintenance records before each use.
Recommendation No. 4: Employers should instruct employees to cease use of telescopic boom lift equipment if it is involved in an injury until the telescopic boom lift has been thoroughly inspected for malfunctions by qualified personnel.
Document Type
Report
Release Date
10-31-2008
Incident Number
08KY007
Repository Citation
Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center, "Roofing Foreman Dies from Telescopic Boom Lift Fall" (2008). Fatality Case Reports--Falls. 5.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/face_falls_reports/5
Case Summary
Included in
Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene Commons, Public Health Education and Promotion Commons
Notes/Citation Information
A summary of this case is available as the additional file listed below.