Page 6 - TPM Newsletter JAN 2020

6 January 2020
FATAL FACTS

Laborer Falls 20 Feet from Scissor Li

SUMMARY
A 56-year-old laborer died a er falling 20 feet from a scissor li in a freezer unit
of a fruit processing cold storage warehouse.

The vic m had been employed for twenty years as a laborer who did a variety of
tasks at his employer’s fruit processing plant and warehouse. On the day of the
incident, he was assigned to remove frost buildup from the pipes on the ceiling
of the freezer unit of the plant’s cold storage warehouse. He used a scissor li
to access the ceiling and a squeegee to remove the frost. He had done this task
many mes.

The li ’s entry swing gate was damaged and had been removed for repair. A The scissor li gate had been removed and
metal chain was put in its place. The chain was posi oned twenty-fi ve inches replaced with a chain.
above the pla orm, at around the height of the mid-rail of the pla orm’s guardrail.

As the vic m scraped the frost, it fell onto the li ’s pla orm, which became
slippery. A er about 45 minutes, another laborer removing ice from the fl oor
heard a noise and turned around to see the vic m on the fl oor. Emergency
responders declared him dead at the scene.

Inves gators found that the vic m had fallen through the gap where the gate
had been removed and landed on the fl oor 20 feet below. The li did not have
lanyard anchorage points.

REQUIREMENTS
Employers must furnish and require employees to use any safety devices and
Incident scene showing the scissor li in the freezer safeguards that are needed to control recognized hazards. All agricultural
unit of the warehouse. The vic m was working
from the elevated li to remove frost build up on methods, opera ons, and processes must be designed to promote the safety
the pipes on the ceiling. and health of employees. See WAC 296-307-045(2).
Employers are responsible for developing and implemen ng a training program for operators of aerial li s. See WAC
296-869-20025.
RECOMMENDATIONS
FACE inves gators concluded that, to help prevent similar
occurrences, employers and workers should:

• Always operate equipment according to the
requirements of the manufacturer operator’s manual.
The operator’s manual for the scissor li specifi ed that
pla orm guardrails and the pla orm entry gate must
be in place, in good working order, and the gate closed
before opera ng the li . This scissor li has six lanyard anchorage
points. Lanyard anchorage points are
• Employers should incorporate the requirements of the recommended for work posi oning
equipment manufacturer operator’s manual into worker restraints.
training.

• Consider using scissor li s that, in addi on to guardrails, are equipped with manufacturer provided anchor points for
personal fall restraint systems. Anchor points may also be installed by qualifi ed persons under the direc on of the
manufacturer or a professional engineer.

Timber Products Manufacturers Associa on