OSHA recently wrapped up an investigation that stemmed from a September 2014 incident in Grand Island, Nebraska, where “a 42-year-old worker fell 16 feet to his death and a 25-year-old co-worker suffered serious injuries after their employer, Roeder Construction, failed to provide either man with fall protection as they worked on a roof,” according to an OSHA news release.
We extend our sympathies to the loved ones of the man who died, and thoughts for the best recovery possible go to the man who was hurt.
The incident occurred when “the two men were installing a heavy-duty, weatherproof tarpaulin on Sept. 15, 2014, on a residential home in Grand Island.” After one employee lost his balance, he started falling. Then “the second man tried to stop his co-workers fall, and the momentum carried both employees off the roof to the ground.”
“One worker died of his injuries two days later, while the second was treated and released from a local hospital with torn ligaments and bruising,” according to the news release. Though both employees had previous roofing-industry experience, each had been with the company for just over one month.
OSHA proposed fines of $7,600 to the company based in Kearney, Nebraska, for violations that included not providing fall protection or training employees in its use and “failing to report the workplace fatality within eight hours.”
For more information and resources, OSHA has an excellent website regarding its Fall Prevention Campaign. A site in Spanish is also available.
In addition, as was recently mentioned on the blog, it is always a good idea to contact an experienced lawyer if you have questions about a safety concern at your job. This website also has information about filing a complaint with OSHA.
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Today’s post comes from guest author Leonard Jernigan, from The Jernigan Law Firm, in North Carolina. He writes about forklifts in the workplace. It is important to be properly trained on any equipment that a person is required to use at work. Forklifts are a fairly common piece of equipment in many business environments, including manufacturing, construction, retail, and other places. Thoughts are with the victims of the forklift incidents in the tragic examples that Mr. Jernigan gives. Please ask for training if you haven’t gotten it on each piece of equipment, and be aware of your right to safely operate equipment at your workplace. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) covers forklifts under the section called Powered Industrial Trucks, and you have to be certified to operate these lifts. The smaller ones you see weigh up to 7,000 pounds and they are so dangerous some experts consider them “inherently dangerous.” It is in violation of federal law to operate a forklift if under the age of 18, and OSHA requires that you be specifically trained. See 29 CFR 1910.178. If operated properly, a forklift is no more dangerous than any other piece of heavy machinery. However, if the operator is not properly trained and certified bad things can happen. We now represent a young man who was allowed to operate a forklift without any certification and the forklift turned over on him and crushed him, damaging several internal organs and his spine. He survived, but he is partially paralyzed from the waist down. He will have a lifetime of pain. He has lost the use of both feet. Other examples are workers being crushed when a forklift accidentally runs into them. The human body cannot withstand a crush impact from a 7,000 pound machine. If the lifts on the forklift are elevated with a heavy load, the potential for a tip-over is greatly increased, even if the operator is moving slowly. Never underestimate the power of a forklift. For more information go to osha.gov and review Powered Industrial Trucks. 
