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WorkSafeBC

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This page contains summaries of Notice of Incident (NI) reports received by WorkSafeBC. This information may help you to prevent similar accidents in your workplace.

THE NI INFORMATION IS PRELIMINARY AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE. Some details have been edited to protect the privacy of workers involved.

Completed WorkSafeBC investigation reports for selected incidents are available online, sorted by industry sector.

All Sectors - Incident Summaries

All Sectors | Construction | Manufacturing | Primary Resources | Public Sector | Service Sector | Trade | Transportation & Warehousing | Young Worker

All Sectors incident summaries from other dates

2007 July - September

Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Blasting
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560528
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A member of the public found an unsecured explosive cartridge on a construction site after working hours.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Tunnelling
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007114550218
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A 100-ton truck-mounted hydraulic crane tipped over while placing a 500-pound pump in a settling pond.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Road construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007114550215
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A 100-ton conventional crane truck contacted overhead 60-kV power lines that crossed the highway.
Injury Type : Fractured pelvis, soft-tissue injuries to back and legs
Core Activity : Condominium construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157270234
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A forklift was being used to raise a gang-form panel. After the panel was unhooked from the raised forks, the operator retracted the forklift's outriggers. The forklift tipped forward, striking a nearby worker.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Commercial diving
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007157490200
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A young worker was working as a diver at a fish farm although he was not certified as an occupational diver. He was removing dead fish from the bottom of a floating fish pen at a depth of 100 feet. The worker was discovered unconscious by a rescue diver and could not be revived.
See a bulletin about the requirements for diving operations at a workplace:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34784
Injury Type : Penetration wound to chest
Core Activity : Framing
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007154930358
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A nail penetrated the chest of a worker using an air nailer.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Truck transport
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147100159
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A transport truck and trailer overturned at a bend on a highway. The rig slid into the concrete barriers at the edge of the road. The cab was crushed, fatally injuring the driver.
Injury Type : Crush injuries to fingertips
Core Activity : Fabrication of metal flashing
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007159110069
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker was cutting 4-inch strips from a sheet of steel (4 feet x 10 feet) on a motor-driven guillotine shear. A mechanical hold-down guard keeps materials in place as they are cut and is controlled by a foot lever. The gap under the hold-down guard was approximately 3/8 inch, allowing the worker's fingertips to enter a point of hazardous operation. The worker's fingers were under the hold-down guard when he pressed the foot lever. The shear cycled, and the hold-down guard came down on the worker's fingers.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavator operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157530319
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

An excavator was operating beneath a guy wire (approximately 20 feet above grade), a secondary power line, and a primary power line (14.4-kV). The excavator moved forward and caught the guy wire, pulling down the attached power pole (located across the street). The power lines grounded themselves on the excavator arm and de-energized. The operator jumped from the excavator and moved a safe distance away. Seconds later the primary line re-energized and burst into flames.
Injury Type : Hand injuries (non-worker)
Core Activity : Log hauling
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007156240203
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A loaded logging truck was travelling on a public highway when it was struck from behind by a pickup travelling in the same direction. The driver of the pickup (not a worker) sustained hand injuries.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Unloading materials from a truck
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158880434
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

As the boom of a mobile crane was being extended, its whip line was two-blocked. The whip line cable broke and the headache ball fell to the deck of the truck being unloaded, narrowly missing the rigger.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Crane operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117080310
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A self-erecting tower crane was working near high-voltage power lines without a safety watcher to monitor the crane's movement. The load line contacted the unguarded power line and was completely severed, causing the load block to fall to street level. It narrowly missed the crane operator, who was operating the pendant controls.
Injury Type : Chest and shoulder strains
Core Activity : Upgrading earth- and rock-filled dam
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560404
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A fully loaded six-wheel-drive rock truck went out of control while travelling down a 9 percent grade haul road. The truck went over the edge of a 20-foot embankment and rolled, coming to rest upside down. The driver, who was wearing his seat belt, sustained minor injuries.
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injuries to shoulder and arm
Core Activity : Stucco application
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007034450344
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A young worker was on an end-frame scaffold, working on exterior stucco. The worker fell approximately 7 feet to grade. The scaffold did not have guardrails at this time, although they had been installed when the scaffold was erected.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007112850177
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A log trailer was being lifted in preparation for reloading it onto a log truck tractor unit when the 10-ton hoist cable failed. The trailer fell approximately 15 feet to the ground, narrowly missing the operator below.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Roadside brushing
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007136960379
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A rubber-tired mechanical brusher was crossing a wood-decked bridge when the cross-ties broke. The machine rolled over and landed upside down in a slough.
Injury Type : Fractured leg
Core Activity : Land clearing, excavation, site preparation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007137290255
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

The driver of a service truck was injured while attempting to enter the truck to stop it from rolling down an incline.
Injury Type : Crushing injuries to neck and head
Core Activity : Fish processing
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007158920149
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A buildup of ice was preventing the door of a bin from closing properly. A worker put his head and neck through the access door. When the obstructing ice was removed, the door suddenly closed, trapping the worker between the access door and the bin door.
Injury Type : Infection from toxic spine contact
Core Activity : Tuna trolling
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007157490222
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A young worker on a fishing boat received an infection in his hands from toxic spine contact. He was airlifted for medical treatment.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Installation of waterproofing compound
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007145130374
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A waterproofing primer was being applied to apartment decks. Flammable vapours built up inside and underneath a deck. When an open-flame propane torch was lighted, the vapours exploded.
Injury Type : Back strain and contusions
Core Activity : Steep-slope roofing
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970507
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A roofer unhooked his lanyard from the lifeline before descending from the roof on a ladder. He slipped and fell 9 feet to the ground, landing on his back.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Gas bar
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007114050292
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A gas station was robbed by a person wearing a mask and brandishing a needle. The robbery occurred in the middle of the night, when only one attendant was working.
See a list of materials for preventing violence in retail, including a handbook for service stations:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Portals/SmallBusiness/SafetyforBusiness.asp?ReportID=32788
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Truck transport of crude oil
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007153370214
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A truck hauling crude oil was involved in a motor vehicle accident with another vehicle. The driver of the oil truck died, and the truck was destroyed by fire.
Injury Type : Fatal (non-worker)
Core Activity : Trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007102100396
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A van driven by a non-worker crossed the centre line and collided with a chip truck. The driver of the van was fatally injured.
Injury Type : Fractured pelvis; internal bleeding
Core Activity : Repair of marine pleasure craft
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007159110060
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker was inspecting a sailboat on stands in the dryland area of a marina, to see what repairs were needed. As he descended from the deck on a job-built wooden ladder, carrying some tools, he slipped and fell approximately 10 feet to the gravel surface below. The wooden ladder did not reach the top of the deck.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Mobile crane operation
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970487
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

The load line of a 22-ton mobile crane hit a 24-kV overhead power line.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Gas utility service call
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147230055
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A gas utility company sent a technician to investigate a report of natural gas odour at a vacant house. As the technician approached, the gas in the house exploded.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Concrete pumping
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560393
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

During the concrete pour of a 4-storey apartment building's perimeter footings, a front outrigger of a 50-metre concrete pump truck was set up on a lock block because of the soft clay soil underneath. After a heavy rainfall, the supporting lock block slipped out from under the outrigger, causing it to sink its full depth (4-5 feet) into the clay. The boom of the concrete pump was extended 110 feet when the truck started to tip over. It stopped when the end of the boom came to rest in the freshly poured concrete. The boom narrowly missed three workers.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Road paving
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007144250256
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A backhoe was being transported on a lowboy trailer pulled by a truck. The backhoe snagged a communications line, causing a power pole to snap and a power line to break.
Injury Type : Bruising to back, hip
Core Activity : Steep-slope roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007113830225
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A young worker was using a shovel to remove old cedar shakes on a 12:12 roof when he slipped and slid down the roof. As he reached the end of the roof, he jumped for the gutter of a neighbouring house. He grabbed the gutter and then fell backwards, hitting first a fence and then the ground. He fell 24 feet from the steep roof. Fall protection had been set up and equipment left on the roof the previous night, but when workers accessed the roof the next day there was no adequate training or supervision to ensure they used the fall protection system.
Sections 3.22 to 3.25 of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation deal with training and orientation of new (and young) workers. These sections of the Regulation came into effect on July 26, 2007. A guideline to help implement them is available at:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/OHSRegulation/ GuidelinePart3.asp#SectionNumber:G3.23
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Site preparation for gravelling and paving
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007154930335
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A backhoe was preparing a parking lot site for paving when it contacted an underground gas line.
Injury Type : Amputation of 1 finger, extensive injuries to another finger
Core Activity : Wooden component manufacture
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007108490173
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

As a young worker attempted to clear an obstruction on a conveyor belt, his hand became caught in an in-running nip point.
Injury Type : Non-injury
Core Activity : Steep-slope roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560406
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker slipped on a residential rooftop. His fall protection equipment prevented him from falling 30 feet.
Injury Type : Amputated fingertip
Core Activity : Machine shop
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007136900143
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A solid sprocket (2 feet in diameter, 600 to 800 pounds) was being lowered onto saw horses. As it was lowered, the sprocket rotated and released from the fabric sling holding it. A worker's finger was caught between the sprocket and the saw horse.
Injury Type : Crushed and fractured fingers
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007034450350
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

At a sawmill, a planer operator was using a pike pole to clear a board jammed in a machine. The pole became caught, and the worker's hand was crushed between the tool and a guide block.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Log yarding
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147100153
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker who was in radio communication with the operator of a grapple yarder requested that the operator swing the grapple closer to a felled tree. The operator lost communication with the worker after swinging the grapple. The worker was found unconscious close to the grapple and later died of his injuries.
Injury Type : Head and body trauma
Core Activity : Land clearing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700257
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A dump truck had backed diagonally up a steep roadway. As it dumped the box, it flipped onto its side. The cab contacted a pile of fill and was crushed. The driver was not wearing a seat belt.
Injury Type : Crush injuries to lower legs
Core Activity : Container terminal
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007104270197
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

At the entrance to a container yard, a driver got out of his truck to get clearance to pick up his container. He then got back into his cab and started to drive his truck and empty container trailer forward into the yard. Another driver standing in front of the rear trailer wheels was dragged forward.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Concrete formwork
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158880411
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A tower crane was moving a manufactured gang-form panel (24 feet x 15 feet) when the rigging on the panel failed. The panel fell 12 feet to the ground.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Underground utilities installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560388
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A trench was being excavated for the installation of underground utilities. A high-voltage conductor was damaged when a rock was dragged across it.
Injury Type : Second-degree burns to head, hands
Core Activity : Plywood manufacture
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007156160248
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

The boiler of a mill power house was fuelled by two feed sources. A worker was running controls for the bin feed and visually monitoring fuel levels to ensure the feeders were full. He did not see a large amount of sander dust come up. The dust fell down into the furnace, causing an internal explosion that backed up the feed chutes and caused the access doors (on the floor) to blow open. Sander dust filled the room and then ignited from flames shooting out the doors.
Injury Type : Broken finger; possible hearing loss; lacerations and bruising
Core Activity : Servicing tire on logging truck
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007158930209
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

The driver of an off-highway logging truck was changing an outside flat tire on the rear axle of the trailer. As he removed the flat tire, the inside tire (which had not been deflated) exploded, causing the flat tire to strike the driver.
View a slide show on tire servicing:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/publications/multimedia/slideshows.asp?reportid=34001
See a manual on large tire servicing:
http://www.worksafebc.com/publications/health_and_safety/by_topic/assets/pdf/large_vehicle_tire.pdf
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Site services installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700254
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

As a backhoe was cleaning out a ditch beside a street, it snagged and ruptured an underground gas line.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Highrise construction
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007117640364
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A section of shotcrete (60 feet long by 30 feet high) failed. The sidewalk and pedestrian protective hoarding slid into the building excavation.
Injury Type : Light bump to the head
Core Activity : Backfilling an excavation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007155730530
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

During backfilling operations, a mini-excavator fell approximately 5 feet into the basement foundation. The operator jumped clear before the machine went over the edge.
Injury Type : Partial amputation of hand (1 worker); head lacerations (1 worker)
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007156580308
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

To assist a co-worker at another workstation, a trim saw operator went under a conveyor system. On his way back to his own workstation, his hand got caught between a belt and an outfeed roller of the conveyor. A second worker was injured when he fell while rushing to turn off the machine.
Injury Type : Electrical burns to hand
Core Activity : Mechanical installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158880405
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A plumber was preparing to drill into an overhead concrete slab. During this preparation, a wire nut (marrette) covering a live 347-volt conductor for lighting became dislodged. The worker contacted the uncovered conductor, sustaining electrical burns.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Quarry
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007097990204
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A rigid-frame off-road truck was dumping a load of crushed rock over the top of a spoils pile. When the edge of the pile gave way, the truck flipped over onto its roof. The driver, who was trapped inside, died of his injuries.
Injury Type : Crush injury to foot
Core Activity : Carpentry and concrete work
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007155070207
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker was patching a parkade entry ramp when a forklift ran over his foot.
Injury Type : Tingling in arms and legs
Core Activity : Motion picture production
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128220132
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker was hit on the head by a falling piece of film set weighing approximately 100 pounds.
Injury Type : Bruises, minor hand injury (1 worker); undetermined injuries (several non-workers)
Core Activity : Transit bus operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158910157
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

The underside of a passenger bus contacted a steel plate that had been placed across a roadway excavation trench. The bus came to a sudden stop, injuring the driver as well as several passengers.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Geophysical fieldwork
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007124120241
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

An excavator ran over a nuclear density gauge on a work site, disabling the instrument and releasing radioactive material. As a result, the site had to be partially shut down and cordoned off until the extent of radioactivity and site contamination could be assessed and cleaned up.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures (non-worker); undetermined injuries (non-worker); minor injuries (worker)
Core Activity : Log hauling
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157600266
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A loaded logging truck (tractor/single-axle jeep/tandem pole trailer configuration) flipped onto its driver's side while negotiating a corner. Spilled logs swiped an oncoming pickup truck. Logs also struck a second oncoming vehicle, with one log going through the car's windshield. The driver and passenger (both non-workers) were injured and had to be extracted from the vehicle. The logging truck driver suffered minor injuries.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Travelling from logging camp
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007116110213
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A pickup truck went out of control as it approached a bridge on a forest service road. The truck left the road and landed upside down in the river.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Water line installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007145130351
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A gas pipeline was ruptured when one side of a trench excavation partially collapsed.
Injury Type : Amputation of 4 fingertips
Core Activity : Metal refining
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007158750080
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A piece of 1-inch plastic hose began to wrap around a running vertical agitator shaft. As a worker tried to pull the hose off, his hand was pulled in and caught between the hose and shaft.
Injury Type : Fractured leg, puncture wound, bruised ribs
Core Activity : Mobile crane operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007137102217
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A 30-ton mobile crane was loading the counterjib section of a tower crane onto a flat deck trailer when a component of the mobile crane failed. The mobile crane flopped over, trapping the operator inside its cab.
Injury Type : Cuts (2 workers)
Core Activity : Masonry
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560371
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

Two workers engaged in a fist fight while on the job. A third worker intervened to break it up. The employer had been aware of escalating tension between the workers.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Framing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157530295
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

Wood trusses (60 feet long) were being installed on a single-storey building. Because of inadequate training and supervision, the workers did not use enough temporary truss braces. The braces failed, causing half of the trusses (about 20) to overturn and push out part of the wood-frame exterior wall.
See a video about long span trusses that presents the basic rules to prevent a truss system from collapsing:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/Multimedia/Videos.asp?ReportID=34285
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Delivery of newspapers/flyers
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115520105
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A newspaper delivery worker was startled and fell onto the pavement when a dog barked inside a house. The worker later succumbed to injuries sustained in the fall.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Removal of underground storage tank
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115520106
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

As an excavator was digging to remove an old heating oil storage tank from a residential property, it snagged and ruptured an underground gas line. Underground utilities had not been located before excavating began.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Electrical work
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007131490242
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A boom truck was moved while its boom was in a raised position. The boom contacted and pulled down an energized overhead 120-volt power line.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Ship and barge repair
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007107200155
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

After undergoing repairs, a 200-foot wood chip barge was being lowered back into the water by a marine elevator. The centre section of the lift platform failed and collapsed into the water. The barge remained suspended by the remaining bow and aft sections of the lift platform.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Commercial crab trap fishing
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007139050025
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A crew member on a commercial crab fishing vessel fell overboard during fishing operations and could not be recovered. The missing worker was not wearing a flotation device.
See a hazard alert about a fisherman who drowned after falling from a fishing boat:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34641
Injury Type : Abrasion on arm, numbness in fingers
Core Activity : Foundry
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158910150
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

Two devices for preventing a crane from two-blocking failed. The devices were on the 5-ton auxiliary hoist of an overhead bridge crane that was also fitted with a 35-ton main hoist. When the load block contacted the upper trolley assembly, the load cable broke, and the block and hook assembly (weighing approximately 250 pounds) fell. The falling block assembly struck a spreader bar on the operating floor, causing it to swing around and contact a worker's arm.
Injury Type : Laceration, bruising, abrasions
Core Activity : Plumbing installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117080280
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A vent shaft opening in the 14th floor of a highrise building was covered but the cover was not secured. A young worker fell through the opening and landed one storey below.
See a hazard alert poster about a similar incident in which a worker was seriously injured:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34669
Injury Type : Cuts and bruises
Core Activity : Commercial trucking
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007102100358
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A tractor-trailer rig went off a highway and into a deep ditch, where it collided with a tree and rolled over. It appears that the driver lost control of the vehicle.
Injury Type : Cracked shoulder bone, rib, vertebra; lung injury; bruising
Core Activity : Repair of electrical pole cross-arms
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007117640362
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A lineman (a young worker) was preparing to overbuild a telecommunications lead with a 3-phase light-angle cross-arm and stringing equipment. The worker descended the pole, using the two-belt system to climb past the neutral traveller. He used the rope belt to secure himself below the traveller and released the pole strap from the right-side D ring. When he leaned back into the second rope belt, the snap on the left-side D ring came free. The worker fell away from the pole and as he fell, he grabbed the telecommunications lead, which was located 12 feet below his initial position. The lead slowed his fall but he continued to fall another 20 feet to the ground.
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injuries to chest, arm, leg
Core Activity : Integrated forest management
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147280231
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A bucker, a groundman, and a skidder operator were working together to buck and yard windthrow. The bucker became pinned between the end of a log and a stump.
Injury Type : Burns to head
Core Activity : Oilfield production operations
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007144250249
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

As a worker tried to restart an incinerator, a flash fire occurred.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Pulp mill
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007143950219
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

As a loader reversed down a makeshift bark ramp on the hog dumper, its left rear wheel went over the guide rail on the ramp. The loader lurched sideways and became partially suspended off the ramp approximately 8 feet above the ground. The operator of the loader lowered the bucket to keep the loader from rolling completely off the ramp.
Injury Type : Fatal (non-worker)
Core Activity : Bulk fluid tanker trucking
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007144250247
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A pickup truck driven by a non-worker crossed the centre line of a highway and collided head-on with an oncoming tanker truck.
Injury Type : Amputation of three fingertips
Core Activity : Shake and shingle mill
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007117640391
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A worker was operating a hydraulically powered cedar shake splitter (cuber). When he activated the foot control, one hand got trapped between the top guillotine and the cedar block.
Injury Type : Severe injuries to arm, facial injuries
Core Activity : Conveyor belt adjustment/modification
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007155400413
Date of Incident : 2007-Sep

A millwright was using a 40-inch bar to clean the drive roller of a 4-foot-wide conveyor belt. His arm was in the space between the top and bottom of the belt. The bar and his arm were pulled into and around the drive roller.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Heavy equipment sales and service
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007140970275
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A crane was lifting a mobile equipment chassis that weighed less than the crane's rated capacity (5 tons). The hook and block failed, and the chassis, hook, and block fell to the floor.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Banking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007137102219
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A person walked into a bank and robbed three tellers.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Integrated logging
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007114050253
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A feller-buncher reached down an 18 percent hillside and cut a pine tree 20 inches in diameter. As the feller-buncher lifted the cut tree and turned, the machine rolled onto its side. The operator, who had only 1 day's experience with this equipment, was not injured, but the ROPS sustained significant damage.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Tower crane operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700239
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

The rigging chains of a self-erecting tower crane contacted overhead transit trolley lines.
Injury Type : Crush injuries to pelvis and hip
Core Activity : Automotive sales and service
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158750071
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A pickup truck was supported on a 2-post automotive hoist when the truck slid off the hoist. The rear of the vehicle landed on the shop floor, striking a worker.
Injury Type : Amputation of 3 fingers
Core Activity : Fish processing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007104270185
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A new worker was assisting at an automated fish slicing machine. The worker reached into the outfeed side of the machine to access a fishtail portion and contacted the 12-inch-wide guillotine knife.
Sections 3.22 to 3.25 of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation deal with training and orientation of young or new workers. These sections of the Regulation came into effect on July 26, 2007. A guideline to help implement them is available at:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/OHSRegulation/ GuidelinePart3.asp#SectionNumber:G3.23
Injury Type : Bruising to head, chest
Core Activity : Pressed board manufacture
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007131490237
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was using an air wand to clean debris from the rooftop of a railway car. He tripped over the air supply hose and fell 14 feet to grade. The worker was wearing a fall protection harness but was not connected to the fall protection system.
Injury Type : Broken nose, bruises
Core Activity : Log home construction
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007131490245
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was installing roofing components on a log home under construction. The worker was standing on top of a wall when he lost his balance and fell approximately 12 feet to grade.
Injury Type : Bruising, contusions
Core Activity : Mechanical harvesting
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007112850163
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A feller-buncher was operating on a short-pitch steep slope. (The slope was 37-40 percent over 30 feet.) The machine tipped over onto the operator's door, trapping the worker inside the cab.
Injury Type : Collapsed lung, crushed ribs, abrasions and bruising
Core Activity : General trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158910145
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

After dark, a worker was placing dangerous goods placards on the front of a docked, disconnected semi-trailer at a dock warehouse. A road tractor backed up to connect to the semi-trailer and crushed the worker.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Asphalt paving
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007130570295
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A skid-steer front-end loader was removing about 4 inches of soil in preparation for paving a residential driveway. It struck a cement block containing the 120-volt electrical service for the residence, severing the electrical conductor. Underground utilities had not been accurately located before excavating began.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Concrete pumping
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107270068
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

The operator of a concrete pumper retracted and stowed the front right outrigger of the unit while the 90-foot boom assembly was in a fully extended vertical position. The carrier unit upset and the boom crashed to the ground.
Injury Type : Fingertip amputated
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007140970274
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was sharpening a planer knife on the side head grinder. He reached forward to check the burr on the back of the knife. As the grinder cycled forward, it pushed his finger across the face of the knife being sharpened. The equipment did not have adequate guarding and had not been locked out as required.
Injury Type : Contusions to chest, leg, elbow
Core Activity : Wood frame construction
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007143950211
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a worker walked on a sheet of oriented strand board (15/32-inch OSB) that covered a stairwell opening, the board broke. The worker fell through the opening approximately 10 feet to the next landing, and then fell approximately 5 feet more to the next floor.
Watch a video about preventing falls through openings:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/Multimedia/Videos.asp?ReportID=34741 See a hazard alert about a similar incident in which a worker was seriously injured:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34669
Injury Type : Fractured foot
Core Activity : Wooden fence or gate manufacture
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117930098
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker fell just under 8 feet from the top of a dumpster to the ground.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures in lower leg and foot
Core Activity : Oil field storage yard
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007158820126
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was assisting the operator of a skid-steer front-end loader to transfer pipes from the test area to a trailer. As he was manually stabilizing a length of pipe, the pipe shifted and his leg contacted the left front tire of the loader. The worker fell to the ground as the loader's tire ran over his leg.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Water main installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700238
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

An excavator dug up and damaged two 1-inch gas lines and one water line.
Injury Type : Exposure to H2S gas
Core Activity : Gas well overhaul
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007124490086
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Workers had been overhauling a gas separator unit. As they were installing the last component of the unit (the PSV), the workers noticed that not all of the residual sludge had been removed from the PSV line. To remedy this, a worker attached a vacuum hose to the line. The agitation of the sludge released hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas, which affected that worker.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Construction of a private access road
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007152480238
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A bulldozer was pushing gravel on a newly constructed access road for a private residence when it slid approximately 70 feet down a 60 percent sidehill. The operator of the bulldozer was fatally crushed.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Structural concrete forming
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131879
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A tower crane two-blocked while attempting to change from a 2-part line to a 4-part line.
Injury Type : Fractured vertebrae
Core Activity : Residential wood frame construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700229
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

On a construction site, a young worker was on a third-floor balcony with no guardrails. He was throwing garbage into a bin below when he fell 25 feet to grade.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures of leg
Core Activity : Heavy equipment service and repair
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007109910182
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a mechanic was changing the boom cylinders on a tracked skid-steer loader, the stand supporting the raised boom shifted. The boom dropped onto his leg. The single support stand could not provide adequate stability.
Injury Type : Strained back muscles
Core Activity : Earth fill dam upgrade
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560347
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Two offroad haul trucks met on a blind corner. They sideswiped each other and narrowly avoided going 60-70 feet down a steep bank. One worker sustained minor injuries. There had been a breakdown in radio procedures.
Injury Type : Amputation of leg
Core Activity : Crab trap fishing
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007139050024
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a fishing vessel was being secured to the wharf, a line through a fairlead became tight. The line caught and amputated the leg of a crew member (a young worker), who then fell into the water. Another crew member rescued the injured worker..
See a hazard alert poster based on this incident:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34992
Injury Type : Injuries (3 workers, 5 non-workers)
Core Activity : Passenger ferry operation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007137290241
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A ferry vessel arriving at the terminal struck a dock. Eight people were injured; two of the passengers required medical treatment.
Injury Type : Exposure to herbicide (5 workers)
Core Activity : Seismic line cutting
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007124490085
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Workers on a seismic project were oversprayed by a helicopter conducting aerial herbicide application to a previously harvested cutblock. Five workers, including one young worker, may have been exposed to the herbicide.
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injuries to shoulder
Core Activity : Installation of playing fields
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700228
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A semi-trailer end dump truck was dumping its load when it flipped onto the driver's side. It struck the blade of a bulldozer, injuring the bulldozer's operator.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Tower crane operations
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117080269
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A tower crane was two-blocked. The upper limit device had not been installed and adjusted in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications and instructions.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Resort maintenance
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007143950209
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was working alone, using a horse to haul logs. A log being hauled by the horse apparently disturbed a wasp nest on the ground. The distressed horse struck the worker on the side of the head, causing fatal injuries.
Injury Type : Crushing injuries to two fingers
Core Activity : Poultry processing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128230239
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a maintenance mechanic was changing a drive belt on an energized piece of equipment, his gloved hand was caught and pulled into the belt drive and the rotating sprocket. Although the equipment had been unplugged from the power supply, it was plugged back in before the mechanic had finished his work and replaced the cover guarding the drive belt and sprockets.
Injury Type : Fractured wrist
Core Activity : Roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158880377
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker set up an extension ladder to access a roof. As he was climbing the ladder, the locks of the fly section disengaged. The fly section retracted and the worker fell approximately 10 feet to the ground.
Injury Type : Fatal (2 non-workers); various injuries (1 worker, 10 non-workers)
Core Activity : Hot air balloon rides
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128230245
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A hot air balloon chartered to take people for aerial tours caught fire after loading but before lifting off the ground.
Injury Type : Electric shock (2 workers)
Core Activity : Concrete pumping
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007113820233
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A concrete pumper truck placing concrete at a commercial construction site contacted an energized overhead power line.
Injury Type : Crushing injuries to fingers
Core Activity : Wire product manufacturing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007145570144
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was being trained to operate a printing press while concurrently operating a spiral wire machine adjacent to the printing press. The worker was going back and forth between the two running machines while being trained. The worker's gloved hand was drawn between the ink and printing rollers of the printing press. The press did not have adequate safeguards, and there were no written safe work procedures for using it.
Sections 3.22 to 3.25 of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation deal with training and orientation of new (and young) workers. These sections of the Regulation came into effect on July 26, 2007. A guideline to help implement them is available at:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/OHSRegulation/ GuidelinePart3.asp#SectionNumber:G3.23
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Logging
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007058250397
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A feller/buncher was falling and decking timber along a roadway to accommodate a later widening of the road. The feller/buncher lost power, causing a tree to fall from the open grab arm onto an energized power line.
Injury Type : Broken ribs, leg
Core Activity : Roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158880376
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was setting the first fall protection anchor on a residential roof when he slipped and fell to the ground (approximately 17 feet).
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Mechanized tree falling
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007131490230
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A mechanized feller-buncher was being relocated up to a logging block boundary that ran parallel to an old road. As the machine was manoeuvred, one of its tracks contacted a blow-down tree, which then struck an energized overhead 24-kV power line.
Injury Type : Broken bones, lacerations (2 workers)
Core Activity : Log hauling
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007140970257
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

On a forest service road, an empty logging truck turned a corner and collided with a pickup truck. The worker driving the pickup truck was seriously injured.
Injury Type : Fractured foot
Core Activity : Road construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007114550194
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

One track of a hydraulic drill ran over a worker's foot.
Injury Type : Amputated finger
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007157380124
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was assisting another worker to clear a jam-up on an automated strapper at the planer. The worker was climbing onto the machine to assist when he inadvertently placed his finger in an unidentified pinch point. As the machine cycled, the worker's finger was pinched between a roller and a metal brace. The young worker was not aware of the workings of this machine, and the other worker thought he was clear of any hazards.
Injury Type : Compound fracture of leg (1 worker); serious injuries (1 non-worker)
Core Activity : Acute care
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007154890105
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

At an acute care facility, a non-worker lost control of a motor vehicle while backing up. The car crashed through the doors of the cafeteria entrance, striking one worker and one non-worker.
Injury Type : Second-degree burns to face, hands
Core Activity : Electrical work
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007122700217
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As an electrician removed a thermometer from the thermowell on a 500,000-gallon liquid asphalt tank, the thermowell released. The worker was burned by liquid asphalt.
Injury Type : Lacerated wrist
Core Activity : Excavation work
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117080262
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A track-mounted excavator was positioned on an excavation ramp constructed and supported by a vertical retaining wall of interlocking concrete blocks. The wall, which was approximately 20 feet high, collapsed and the excavator rolled over into the excavation.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavation work
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007058250399
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

An excavator was digging out a concrete head wall to connect a surface storm sewer pipe. The excavator's bucket struck and ruptured a 3-inch natural gas line.
Injury Type : Sprains, strains, tears
Core Activity : Hauling trusses
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007104070103
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A 5-ton flatbed truck hauling trusses stopped on a bridge and waited for the pilot car to hold oncoming traffic. The truck's tail-light flashers were not activated. By the time the driver of a loaded log truck behind the truss truck realized the truss truck had stopped, it was too late to avoid a rear-end collision. The driver of the flatbed truck was injured.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Sewer line installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128230235
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

During the installation of a new sewer line, an old 6-inch sewer line was located and exposed by hand. The old line was in the way so needed to be removed. A worker cut into it with a chop saw and inadvertently severed a live 60-mm gas line that was inside the old sewer line.
Injury Type : Bump and cut on head
Core Activity : Hydraulic log loader relocation
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007108490162
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a hydraulic log loader was being driven along a logging road bridge, a portion of the outside edge of the wood-over-steel bridge failed. The log loader rolled off the bridge.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Backfilling and excavating
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007156580268
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a dump truck dumped a load of backfill, it pulled down overhead service lines.
Injury Type : Concussion
Core Activity : Bulk liquid tanker truck
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007144250222
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A tanker truck pulling a trailer unit (pup) carrying 38 cubic metres of condensate swerved to miss some large bumps at a corner. The trailer unit hit a bump, went out of control, and rolled onto its side, pulling over the tractor unit and rolling it onto the driver's side. Another motorist saw the accident and went to get help from workers at a nearby drilling rig. Four members of the rig crew donned SCBAs and rescued the driver.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Elevator maintenance
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147280221
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was conducting regular maintenance on an elevator in a residential building. He was found crushed between the elevator and the elevator shaft.
Injury Type : Crushing injuries to upper body
Core Activity : Door and window manufacture
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007105910226
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Two young workers were loading and stacking approximately 2,000 pounds of windows in the back of a truck trailer in preparation for transport. The unsecured load suddenly shifted and fell onto one of the workers.
See a hazard alert about an unsecured load crushing a worker:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34722
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injuries
Core Activity : Ground-based log harvesting
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007114050239
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was operating a grapple skidder on a moderately sloped harvesting block. The operator tried to back the skidder up a short hill to reach the butts of the logs at the top of the hill. The skidder could not negotiate the 41-45 percent slope. The operator then drove around the hill and up to the top, where he drove over the log pile with the front left tire in the downslope direction, to better position the skidder to pick up and drag the log pile. As the front tire dropped off the end of the pile and onto the excessive slope, the skidder became unstable and rolled 1 1/2 times down the hill.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Structural concrete forming
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131866
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A fly table leg and foot assembly weighing approximately 50 pounds fell from the 6th floor of a building under construction. The assembly landed on a vehicle and broke its windshield.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Moving granite rock
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157270203
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As an excavator was moving rocks, the bucket swung around and hit a transformer vault, tripping the power to an adjacent building.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Drilling and blasting equipment services
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560340
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A mechanic was servicing a rock drill. When he was finished, he attempted to park the rock drill and inadvertently drove it off the side of the terraced hill.
Injury Type : Broken leg
Core Activity : Installing stair trim
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007158880370
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker opened a second-floor door and stepped into an elevator shaft. The worker fell 16 feet.
Injury Type : Broken arm
Core Activity : Framing
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970432
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was on the second-storey wall plate of a house accepting 15-foot roof trusses from fellow workers. The worker fell, landing approximately 18 feet below.
Injury Type : Fractured ankle
Core Activity : Marine barge towing
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007158930208
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A barge was rolling from side to side and taking on water. As a worker started the portable drainage pumps, he was struck by shifting equipment.
Injury Type : Fractured pelvis, lacerated leg
Core Activity : Low-slope roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131863
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was repairing an old barn roof. The 2x4 supporting the metal roofing broke under the worker's weight, and he fell through the roof to grade (approximately 22 feet). The aluminum sheeting he was working on had not been properly installed or secured.
Injury Type : Fractured leg
Core Activity : Manual tree falling
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007158930201
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

For a road right-of-way, a hand faller was falling old-growth timber that included a hemlock danger tree 70 feet high and 42 inches in diameter. When the faller started the back cut, the hemlock split into multiple slabs. The faller was struck by a slab weighing 120 pounds (5.5 feet long, 15 inches wide, 4 inches thick).
Injury Type : Contusions and soft-tissue injuries (1 worker); bruising, back strain (1 worker)
Core Activity : Exploration and prospecting
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007156240160
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

An all-terrain vehicle with two workers in it was descending a hill. The front tire hit a stump and the vehicle rolled over, pinning the driver under the vehicle.
Injury Type : Severe lacerations to fingers on one hand
Core Activity : Lumber manufacture
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007154930300
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker reached through and past a trim saw guard.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Pulp mill
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007101110167
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Excessive pressure in a process tower caused a manhole cover to be blown off it. The cover went through a concrete block wall and struck a rail car outside, damaging the car.
Injury Type : Sprains and abrasions (4 workers)
Core Activity : Placing and finishing concrete
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007159110051
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As concrete was being poured for the suspended slab of the first floor of an apartment building, the slab collapsed. Four workers, including 2 young workers, sustained minor injuries.
Injury Type : Head abrasion, bruising from seat belt
Core Activity : Rock truck operations
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007154930301
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A rock truck was operating on a hill when it rolled. The driver was wearing his seat belt and sustained just minor injuries.
Injury Type : Fatal (1 worker); serious injuries (1 worker)
Core Activity : Residential and commercial moving
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147280216
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a commercial truck was travelling on a bridge on-ramp, it broke through a railing and landed upside down on the road below. The driver of the truck died and another worker in the truck was seriously injured.
Injury Type : Fractured arm
Core Activity : Residential construction
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970428
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker laid a sheet of plywood on the floor joists of a house, then used his foot to move the end of the plywood into position. As he did this, the sheet flipped upwards and the worker fell 9 feet to the basement below.
Injury Type : Severe chemical burns to upper body
Core Activity : General trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007130260161
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was off-loading a bulk delivery of sulfuric acid. The worker was badly burned when acid was accidentally released at the connection between the tanker hose and the inlet pipe of the bulk storage tank.
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injuries to neck and back, abrasions
Core Activity : Ceramic tile wholesale
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007070890068
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker used a lift truck to place a pallet of ceramic tiles on the third tier of a steel storage rack system. As he returned with a second skid of tiles, he heard sounds that alerted him to a failing horizontal beam connection in the rack system. The worker jumped from the lift truck as the tiles fell. He was struck mostly by tiles deflected by the protective canopy of the lift truck.
Injury Type : Fractured tailbone
Core Activity : Waterproofing of concrete
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007156580260
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was preparing a suspended slab for installation of weatherproofing. The worker moved a pallet, causing a 4x4 sheet of plywood underneath the pallet to shift. As the plywood shifted, the worker fell through a hole in the deck and landed on the concrete floor 15 feet below.
See a hazard alert about about a similar incident in which a worker was seriously injured:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34669
Injury Type : Fractured vertebra
Core Activity : Landscaping
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007129730664
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was trimming a tree when he fell backward approximately 6 feet. He landed on his back on a paved sidewalk.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Delivery of electrical equipment
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007105910214
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A flatbed truck equipped with a crane was delivering a transformer to a work site for installation. Once the transformer was unloaded, the truck drove off the site without fully retracting the crane's boom. The elevated boom contacted communications lines, snapping off the pole at the butt.
Injury Type : Exposure to a hazardous atmosphere (2 workers)
Core Activity : Bridge construction
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007159480053
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Two workers tested a confined space but did not ventilate it, as required, before entering. When one worker felt dizzy and nauseous, both exited the space to fresh air and immediately felt better.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Consulting engineering
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131865
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

One wall of an excavation face moved approximately 4 inches into the 70-foot excavation.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavating
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131861
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

An excavator struck and ruptured a 6-inch pressurized natural gas line.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Residential wood frame construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700213
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

An excavator bucket contacted a building's primary electrical feed (from a 25-kV switch gear vault).
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Re-shore removal
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131857
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A steel re-shore, weighing approximately 50 pounds, fell from a 10th-floor balcony to the roof of the display suite at grade.
Injury Type : Compression fracture of spine; pain in back, head
Core Activity : Exterior painting
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131858
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker fell from the second and third steps of a wooden 6-foot stepladder to the ground.
Injury Type : Puncture wound and abrasion to leg, lacerations to arm
Core Activity : Demolition
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007114550192
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was reportedly throwing lumber down from the flat portion of a partially demolished garage. A nail caught his shirt and he was pulled off the building. He fell approximately 16 feet and landed on the dunnage pile.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Integrated logging
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007114050234
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A grapple skidder was travelling down a previously used skid trail with a slope of 50 percent to retrieve a bundle of logs in the harvesting block. The skidder went out of control, pushed over a tree, and rolled approximately 200 feet downhill before coming to rest on a ridge above the log landing. The operator died of his injuries.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Glass installation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131847
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a double-paned window (24 x 40 inches) was being installed on the 18th floor of a building, the window fell. It landed on the 2nd floor.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavating
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007154930292
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

While excavating a shallow trench in a residential area, a trenching machine contacted a gas service line.
Injury Type : Fractured skull and arm, shoulder injury
Core Activity : Crane operation
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007113820207
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A conventional crane was placing an extracted pile on the deck of a barge. The load cell unit affixed to the jib of the crane broke away from the boom. The load cell unit fell 75 feet, striking a worker who was placing dunnage for the extracted pile. Components used to mount the load cell on the crane were job-built, not supplied by the manufacturer.
Injury Type : Amputation of parts of two fingers
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007147280212
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was preparing to start up a gang rip saw. He had started the ribbed outfeed landing roll and was checking the saw outfeed before starting the saw. His gloved hand contacted the rotating landing roll and was drawn into a narrow gap between the roll and a sloped steel plate on the downstream side of the roll. The hazardous point of operation was not adequately safeguarded.
Injury Type : Skull fracture causing loss of consciousness, serious brain swelling, brain injury
Core Activity : Tree services
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007137290231
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Workers were removing trees at a residence. One worker had climbed a tree to top it by cutting blocks and pushing them off the tree so they fell to the ground. A worker on the ground retrieved each dropped block between cuts, a procedure that is inherently hazardous as it relies on worker timing. The coordinated timing of their tasks failed, and the ground worker was in the hazard area when a block of wood was dropped. The block fell 45 feet before striking the worker, who was not wearing a hard hat.
Injury Type : Fractured collarbone, ribs; mild concussion; head laceration
Core Activity : Concrete reinforcing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007115131837
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a worker attempted to bend a piece of reinforcing steel over a metal beam, the reinforcing steel slipped. The worker lost his balance and fell to the concrete floor (just under 14 feet). No form of fall protection was being used.
Injury Type : Fractured vertebrae, ribs, leg, arm; injuries to head
Core Activity : Concrete pumping
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007034450277
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A concrete pumper was descending a road with a 10 percent grade when the truck lost a portion of its braking system. The truck left the road 100 feet uphill from a 90-degree hairpin curve. The driver was found 50 feet back from the truck.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavating
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128230213
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

An excavator contacted and broke a 25-kV underground conductor.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Glazing manufacture
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007137102207
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker was using a manual pallet jack to move a rack of glass panels weighing approximately 2,400 pounds. The pallet jack was not intended for this task, as it had to lift the rack off-centre. The unbalanced load fell over backwards, crushing the worker.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Helicopter aerial work
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007137160204
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A helicopter was flying shake blocks when it lost power. It contacted the ground and rolled over.
Injury Type : Compound fracture of lower leg
Core Activity : Salmon seine fishing
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007139050022
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A crew member on a salmon seine fishing vessel was deploying the sea anchor from the seine skiff to pull the net off the drum during a set. In the process, the sea anchor's buoy line (5/8-inch polypropylene rope) became wrapped around the worker's leg. When the sea anchor was deployed, the line suddenly tightened, and the worker was pulled out of the skiff and into the water.
Injury Type : Deep gash to arm
Core Activity : Site services
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700201
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker either stepped backwards or lost his balance and fell into an excavation. He landed on top of another worker, who was operating a cutoff saw with a 12-inch diamond blade. The arm of the worker who fell contacted the rotating saw blade.
Injury Type : Neck and upper body injuries
Core Activity : Trucking
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007129920259
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A loaded semi-trailer truck flipped onto its side while taking a corner.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Installation of anchors for buoys
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007119700198
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A rubber-tracked crawler crane was working from a barge, placing buoy anchors in a lake. The crane slipped off the barge and sank in approximately 25 feet of water.
Injury Type : Temporary loss of consciousness, abrasion to head
Core Activity : Seismic exploration
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007158820115
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A three-person drilling crew was on its way to the helipad for pickup because of deteriorating weather conditions. The three workers were knocked to the ground. One worker, who was trailing about 25 meters behind the other two, was struck by lightning.
Injury Type : Head and chest injuries
Core Activity : Tarping a truckload of shavings
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007126770129
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A worker had been tarping a load of shavings on a truck. As he descended the ladder, an aluminum hand-hold broke free of its welds. The worker fell to the pavement 9.5 feet below.
Injury Type : Amputation of two fingertips
Core Activity : Sawmill
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007157440156
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was stationed in front of a transfer chain, taking away boards cut from cants by the horizontal band tailer. As the worker reached for a waste board, his gloved hand became caught in a chain sprocket.
Injury Type : Fractured ribs, internal injuries
Core Activity : Painting
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700196
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a tractor-trailer pulled out of a warehouse loading dock, it hit a scissor-lift with a worker on it and knocked the lift onto its side.
Injury Type : Electric shock
Core Activity : Electrical work
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700197
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was injured while connecting a mislabelled live 110/208 electrical feed to an electrical panel.
Injury Type : Fractured vertebrae, ribs
Core Activity : Plumbing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007122700200
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

As a worker was installing pipe hangers, he fell from a stepladder to the concrete floor 7 feet below.
Injury Type : Fractured ribs, crush injuries to head and upper body
Core Activity : Unloading pipeline equipment
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2007158820113
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Two pipes were being unloaded from a truck and trailer. One pipe (weighing 1,000 pounds) rolled off the truck, striking and pinning a worker.
Injury Type : Burn to upper body, soft-tissue damage to back
Core Activity : Sheet metal installation and welding
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007154890093
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A young worker was welding stainless steel inside a boiler (a confined space) when he sustained an electric shock. The method of welding was tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding, which involves a constant-current welding power supply and requires that insulation be placed on the ground where the welding is done. In this incident, no insulation had been placed on the floor.
Injury Type : Fatal (1 worker); multiple fractures of foot and ankle, dislocated hip (1 worker)
Core Activity : Travel on logging road
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007104070088
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

Two workers were driving out of the bush in a 1-ton vehicle. It skidded off a narrow portion of the logging road and rolled. The vehicle went end-over-end at least once down about 150 feet on a 78 percent slope. The workers, who were not wearing seat belts, were ejected.
Injury Type : Broken vertebrae, tingling/pain in arms
Core Activity : Delivery of bottled non-alcoholic beverage
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128220121
Date of Incident : 2007-Aug

A truck broke down on the side of a highway. The driver left the truck to find a telephone. Attempting to jump over a ditch, he fell and struck his head.
Injury Type : Pain in upper back and neck
Core Activity : Structural concrete forming
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007127840025
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Workers were setting up falsework at a construction site. As one worker removed a joist, he inadvertently struck a shoring post, causing the falsework to collapse. A second worker, who was standing on top of the falsework, fell approximately 10 feet to the floor.
Injury Type : Concussion, multiple fractures (non-worker)
Core Activity : Demolition and reconstruction of a residence
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007105910207
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker on a job site invited a non-worker onto the site to access the pre-fabricated platform of a 30-foot scaffold to enjoy the view. The worker then left the platform to help with a task on the site. Several minutes later the workers on site heard a shout and found the non-worker lying on the ground at the base of the scaffold.
Injury Type : Back and neck strain
Core Activity : Pipeline replacement
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007152480215
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A side-boom tractor was working on a 24 percent slope. As it attempted to lift a section of pipeline, it flipped over backwards.
Injury Type : Spinal injury causing paralysis
Core Activity : Fishing lodge
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007113820206
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A fishing guide was found semi-conscious on the exposed deck of a ship converted into a fishing lodge. The worker had fallen 23 feet from a deck guarded by a metal guardrail 42 inches high.
Injury Type : Pain in hips, bruising
Core Activity : Drilling
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970401
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A rock drill rolled over an embankment, narrowly missing the operator.
Injury Type : Compound fracture of leg
Core Activity : Exterior painting of highrise building
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007155400268
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A 7-metre swing stage was being lowered to the ground with 3 workers inside. Two workers on the ground were helping to pull the swing stage away from the building as it descended. The worker in the centre of the swing stage tied part of his safety rope to the top handrail bar of the swing stage while the free end was pulled by a worker on the ground. The two workers at each end of the swing stage continued to drive it down. However, the rope on the handrail prevented the swing stage from lowering evenly, so the swing stage became suspended at an angle, with the left end much lower than the right end. The handrail that had the safety rope attached to it then broke, causing the right end to drop suddenly. There was enough slack line to allow the right end to quickly descend approximately 20 feet, stopping just above the ground. The worker on the right end was not connected to his safety rope and was injured by the safety device when the swing stage came to an abrupt stop. The other two workers were suspended by their safety ropes at heights exceeding 12 feet.
Injury Type : Bruises and contusions to upper body
Core Activity : Seine fishing
Location : Northwest BC
ID Number : 2007157490190
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A seine fisherman was hit by a beach line (a line used to tie the net to the beach). He then fell an estimated 15 feet into the water.
Injury Type : Broken facial bones; soft-tissue injuries
Core Activity : Log hauling
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007126770123
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A loaded logging truck travelling on a highway missed a sharp curve. The truck crossed the centre line, overturned, and slid into a section of no-posts. The truck, trailer with logs, and the no-posts all ended up off the highway at the bottom of a steep embankment.
Injury Type : Difficulty breathing, dizziness, tingling in arms
Core Activity : Wood chip truck operation
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007090580264
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A chip truck driver had loaded the lead trailer from an overhead bin. Without closing the chip bin gates, he backed up the unit to level the load. The chips that had remained in the bin came down, burying the tractor. Both the side windows in the tractor were open and wood chips entered the cab, trapping the driver to chest level.
Injury Type : Fractured ribs, abrasions to arms
Core Activity : Auto recycling
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970399
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A rough-terrain lift truck was removing a vehicle that had been positioned on two sets of concrete blocks to remove fluids from the engine. The vehicle slipped from the extended forks of the lift truck, pinning a young worker against some tires.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavation for residential basement/foundation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007155270209
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

The knuckle of an excavator's boom contacted the lower secondary phase of a 120/240-volt overhead power line.
Injury Type : Shortness of breath, increased heart rate, disorientation (2 workers)
Core Activity : Plumbing installation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007129920256
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Two plumbers had drained a 4-inch, yet-to-be-commissioned potable water distribution line. They noticed an odour like rotten eggs or stagnant water and experienced symptoms of exposure to a potentially hazardous substance.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Bridge construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007156580249
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

An operator was travelling a crane back to a central location after its boom had been disassembled. The crane contacted the ground wire associated for low-voltage power lines, creating an electrical arc.
Injury Type : Laceration to head
Core Activity : Log hauling
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007034450266
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A loaded log transporter rolled onto its side while negotiating a curve on a public roadway.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Structural concrete production
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007154890090
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Four top-running double-girder cranes were lifting a concrete bridge girder about 165 feet long and weighing approximately 87 tons. During the lift, the girder contacted the underside of a crane. The load line broke and the girder fell.
Injury Type : Fractured leg, soft-tissue injuries to other leg
Core Activity : Barge and tug operations
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007137290205
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

As a barge was being positioned by a tug, a worker was caught between a tensioned rope and barge cleats.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace (2 workers)
Core Activity : Corner store
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007150180125
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Two young workers were on duty in a store when a person wearing a mask entered. The person demanded money while holding a knife to the throat of one of the workers.
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injuries (4 workers); respiratory difficulties from pepper spray (1 worker); undetermined injuries (10 workers)
Core Activity : Acute care
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007138190255
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Fourteen hospital employees and a security guard sustained a variety of injuries when they were assaulted by an individual brought to the emergency ward by the police.
See a list of resources for preventing violence in the workplace:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Portals/HealthCare/Violence.asp
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Vessel towing boomsticks
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157600230
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A 28-foot vessel was towing 10 boomsticks doubled-up (2 rows of 5) through the opening of a swing bridge and down a river. The last boomstick on one row swung across the fixed middle portion of the swing bridge, causing the boom chain between the 4th and 5th boomsticks to become hung up on the swing bridge foundation. This in turn caused the vessel to come to a stop, take on water, and sink. One worker on board managed to reach the deployed life raft; five others hung onto boomsticks.
Injury Type : Electrical shock
Core Activity : Glass window installation or replacement
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117080235
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Workers on a portable powered swing stage reported that they were receiving electrical shocks. The swing stage supplier advised the workers to unplug the electrical power cord and use the emergency descent device to lower the swing stage to the ground. When the supplier's representative arrived at the site, the power cord was reinstalled in the hoisting motors so that the suspension cables could be removed from the climbing hoist. As the hoist controls were being operated to remove the cable, one of the workers was pulling on the remaining steel suspension cables. This young worker was holding onto the metal stirrup for support and sustained a severe electrical shock.
Injury Type : Burns to head and arms
Core Activity : Manufacture of wood moulding
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007137290204
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

At a wood products mill, a chain was being installed on the infeed conveyor. The conveyor was energized and the equipment was being "jogged" to install the chain. When the equipment stopped "jogging," a worker went to the main control panel to check the power to the motor. As he stood in front of the panel with the switch door open and applied a hand-held tester, an arc formed, causing an electrical fire.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Renovation of sports stadium
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007155270205
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A 600-pound, 23-foot-long iron beam was being installed to create a temporary hoist platform for a dehumidifier. The beam was lifted into position and secured at one end with a single steel bolt (3/4 inches in diameter). The bolt was the only means of support while the unattached crane was repositioning to lift the other end for fastening. The bolt sheared, and the beam fell approximately 45 feet. One end of the beam punctured a hole in the concrete below.
Injury Type : Fractured pelvis
Core Activity : Highrise construction
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007066160077
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was stripping forms while standing on a scaffold. He lost his balance and fell backwards to the ground 8 feet below.
Injury Type : Concussion, soft-tissue injuries
Core Activity : Industrial heavy equipment service and repair
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007156680152
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A heavy equipment moving company was installing a large milling machine at a manufacturing plant. To retrieve wooden dunnage from on top of the boom truck, a worker climbed a 10-foot stepladder. The ladder tipped over and the worker fell 8-9 feet.
Injury Type : Laceration to head
Core Activity : Steep-slope roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157520267
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was applying roof flashing materials on a 14/12 pitch, lower-level roof. He fell to the ground (approximately 13 feet).
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Beetle-killed tree removal and salvage
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007156240148
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A feller buncher cut a 20-metre pine tree. As the operator was placing the tree, the top contacted a 14.4-kV overhead power line, which had not been previously identified. The primary and neutral lines broke and fell to the ground. The resulting short-circuit ignited materials on the ground, resulting in a 3.8-hectare forest fire.
Injury Type : Lacerations to the head and face
Core Activity : Fishing vessel unloading
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007157490191
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was standing in the hatch of a fishing vessel, unloading fish. A plastic bucket used for hoisting fish struck the worker.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Excavating
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007143950188
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

An excavator contacted and damaged an underground 14.4-kV electrical conductor.
Injury Type : Concussion; fractured rib; lacerations to back, arms, head
Core Activity : Collection of recyclable materials
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007129730635
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was riding on the back of a sanitation truck travelling at approximately 25 km/hr. As the worker attempted to reach for a water bottle, he fell backwards onto the road 2 feet below.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Sewer construction
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007128230205
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

An excavator ruptured a 3/4-inch low-pressure gas line.
Injury Type : Concussion
Core Activity : Roofing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157270191
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A young worker was retrieving a piece of roofing material when he tripped and fell 10 feet, 8 inches from a balcony without guarding.
Sections 3.22 to 3.25 of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation deal with training and orientation of young or new workers. These sections of the Regulation came into effect on July 26, 2007. A guideline to help implement them is available at:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/OHSRegulation/ GuidelinePart3.asp#SectionNumber:G3.23
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Installation of lawn irrigation system
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157560310
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

An excavator was trenching for installation of a lawn irrigation system when it severed a 1.5-inch natural gas line. The excavator operator misjudged the location of the gas line; it had not been hand located before trenching began.
Injury Type : Bruises
Core Activity : Paving services
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007156580245
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A young worker was flushing trenches in a crouched position when he was struck by a pickup truck backing up out of its parking stall. The worker yelled out and the driver immediately stopped the vehicle, then drove forward, away from the worker.
Injury Type : Fatal (1 worker); wounds, contusions (2 workers); inhalation of a hazardous substance (7 workers)
Core Activity : Manufacture of wood finish
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007147280198
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

An undetermined substance exploded near the start of the production shift. One worker died from injuries sustained in the explosion, and two others were injured. Another seven are believed to have inhaled toxic substances.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Trenching/ditching for sewer and drainage pipes
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007157600223
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

An excavator's bucket struck a buried crude oil pipeline while preparing a site for the installation of a sanitary sewer manhole.
Injury Type : Crushing injuries to upper body
Core Activity : Concrete pumping
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2007159110032
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

The operator of a concrete pumper truck was cleaning up the unit after a pour. As the driver-side front outrigger was retracted, the operator (a young worker) became pinned between the extendable portion of the outrigger and the truck's chassis.
Injury Type : Ringing in the ears
Core Activity : Offloading vehicles from ferry
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007126770118
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

Vehicles were being offloaded from a car ferry at a terminal. One vehicle was towing a trailer that contained a propane tank. As this vehicle started up the ramp, the trailer hitch scraped the ramp, causing a spark. The spark ignited propane fumes and the propane tank exploded, destroying the trailer and damaging other vehicles. One worker had ringing ears from the explosion.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Grain farming
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007126770121
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was cleaning the floor of a grain storage bin. A pin securing an aeration tunnel in a raised position failed, causing the tunnel to fall. The falling tunnel structure narrowly missed the worker inside the bin.
Injury Type : Fractured vertebra and pelvis
Core Activity : Wood framing
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007155070183
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

While working on a new single-family dwelling, a framer fell approximately 29 feet from the bottom chord of a roof truss. The worker passed through two vertically aligned uncovered staircase openings and landed on a concrete slab at basement level.
Injury Type : Laceration to neck and leg
Core Activity : Woodworking
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970382
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A young worker was using an air grinder (rated for 22,000 rpm) with a 4-inch zip blade (rated for 19,100 rpm) to remove excess metal material. The blade disintegrated and shrapnel struck the worker.
See a hazard alert poster about a similar incident where a worker died:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=33277
Injury Type : Concussion, contusions to head
Core Activity : Warehouse
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007107970385
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A young worker was transferring a 400-pound packaged door from a material basket attached to a lift truck into a delivery truck. Another packaged door, which was adjacent and not stored properly, fell and struck the worker's head.
Injury Type : Broken ribs, cracked vertebrae
Core Activity : Falling and bucking
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007058250325
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A faller entered a clutch of 13 trees to fall a fir tree 120 feet high (22-inch diameter). The fir was entangled with the top of a poplar tree 90 feet high (10-inch diameter). The faller believed that when the fir fell, the poplar would either remain upright or fall in a direction that would allow a clear escape route. Instead, when the fir tree went down, the poplar fell towards the faller. It struck another standing tree, which broke in the middle. Part of this jackknifed tree blocked the faller's escape route and struck him on the back.
Injury Type : Fractured fingers
Core Activity : Wooden component manufacture
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2007131490188
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was attempting to remove a trim block jammed at the tail end of a belt waste conveyor. The worker's hand got caught in the in-running nip point of the conveyor belt and tail drum. The equipment had not been locked out.
Injury Type : Facial fractures
Core Activity : Forklift operation
Location : BC
ID Number : 2007117670247
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

At a gravelled storage yard, a young worker was attempting to use one forklift to pull free a second forklift, using a 14-foot-long, 3/8-inch hooked chain. The hook on the stuck forklift slipped from the hitch pin hole and struck the worker on the head.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Painting exterior of building
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2007117670268
Date of Incident : 2007-Jul

A worker was using a boom truck to paint the outside of a building. The worker had forgotten to deploy the stabilizers, and the boom truck tipped onto its side. The worker rode the bucket down from a height of about 20 feet.


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