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Fatality Narrative: Worker Struck by Vehicle When Exiting Trench in Roadway PDF Version Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
 

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Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, Washington State Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program

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Industry: Utility installation Release Date: January 9, 2003
Occupation: Construction foreman Case No.: 02WA03401
Task: Installing natural gas line connection in roadway trench SHARP Report No.: 71-6-2003
Type of Incident: Struck by motor vehicle  

On June 10, 2002, a construction foreman was struck and killed by a pickup truck while exiting an approximately 2 1/2 foot deep trench in a roadway work zone where he had been installing a natural gas line connection. The 49-year-old member of the Plumber and Pipefitter's Union had been working with two others in the roadway. The work zone was on a busy city street and had warning signs and cones. The crew foreman was exiting the shallow trench in the roadway when a pickup truck plowed through the work zone striking him from behind and then struck another worker. The foreman died a short while later in a hospital. The other worker was hospitalized with head and facial injuries.


Requirements/Recommendations
(! Indicates items required by law)

    ! Follow Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) requirements for temporary traffic control for specific roadway work zone site.
  • Place temporary engineering controls such as Jersey barriers, water filled barrels, a truck with a rear-mounted impact attenuater, material piles, or construction vehicles between traffic lanes and work zone workers to supplement administrative controls (signs).
  • Consider road closure when possible.
    ! Employer must make an assessment of potential work site safety hazards, as required by the regulation, before starting work, and mitigate accordingly.
    ! On-site flaggers and traffic control supervisors are required to have training in the control of traffic. We recommend that project managers also receive this training.
  • Workers should have a communication plan and an emergency exit strategy in the event an errant vehicle enters the work zone
State Wide Statistics: This was the 31st work-related fatality in Washington State during the year 2002. It was also the 6th construction industry and the 2nd road construction work zone fatality of the year.

This paper appears in the eLCOSH website with the permission of the author and/or copyright holder and may not be reproduced without their consent. eLCOSH is an information clearinghouse. eLCOSH and its sponsors are not responsible for the accuracy of information provided on this web site, nor for its use or misuse.

This bulletin was developed at the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries to alert employers and employees in a timely manner of a tragic loss of life of a worker in Washington State. We encourage you to consider the above information as you make safety decisions for or recommendations to your company or constituency. The information in this notice is based on preliminary data ONLY and does not represent final determinations regarding the nature of the incident or conclusions regarding the cause of the fatality.

Developed by the Washington State Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) and Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA) Programs at the WA State Dept. of Labor & Industries. For more information, contact the Safety and Health Assessment and Research for Prevention (SHARP) Program, 1-888-667-4277, http://www.lni.wa.gov/sharp/face.