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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 Trade incidents are available online.

Trade - Incident Summaries

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

Trade incident summaries from other dates

2009 - (updated October 19, 2009)

Injury Type : Concussion, head laceration  
Core Activity : Retail bakery
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009154960290
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A worker accessing a storage room fell through an open, unguarded floor hatch.
Injury Type : Back injury  
Core Activity : Product delivery
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009165810100
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A boom truck was travelling along a residential street. While making a left-hand turn, the vehicle tipped onto the driver's side.
Injury Type : Respiratory irritation, chest pain  
Core Activity : Home improvement centre
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009119270060
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

Workers and customers were evacuated from a store after a pungent, irritating odour was detected. One worker needed medical treatment.
Injury Type : Serious hand injuries  
Core Activity : Retail bakery
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009102100649
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

A worker was feeding dough into the feed rolls of a dough sheeter. While reaching for dough that was not feeding properly, the worker's hand was pulled into the press rolls.
Injury Type : Serious lacerations
Core Activity : Second-hand store
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009117640419
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A non-worker was trying to drop off used goods at a charity-run store. When he was told he could not drop off any items because it was past the time limit for the day, he became violent and pushed a worker through a plate glass window (5 feet by 7 feet).
Injury Type : Foot injuries
Core Activity : Building supply sales and delivery
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009154970326
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A forklift was loading materials onto a trailer truck. As the forklift backed away, its rear wheels ran over the foot of the truck driver, who was strapping the load.
Injury Type : Injuries to head, neck
Core Activity : Convenience store
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009112010022
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

During an attempted robbery, a worker in a convenience store was assaulted.
Injury Type : Hand injury, bruises
Core Activity : Gas bar and convenience store
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009165870081
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A worker at a gas bar was injured during an altercation with a person trying to use a stolen credit card.
Injury Type : Crush injury to hand
Core Activity : Bakery operation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009161290355
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A worker was operating a sheeter machine. This machine is fed dough, which it compresses between rollers to remove excess air. The machine then folds the dough in preparation for a loaf to be readied for the oven. As the worker removed excess flour from the feeder deck, one finger contacted the compression rollers and the hand was drawn in. The emergency stop guarding bar then stopped the machine.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Roofing materials delivery
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009154970275
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

As a truck-mounted crane was hoisting a load of plywood to a rooftop, the crane lifted off one outrigger. The boom and load swung downward and landed on the ground.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Retail store
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157600116
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A dust devil (small whirlwind) struck a retail store. Two skylights (each weighing about 500 pounds) were ripped out of their frames on the store's flat roof. One skylight landed on the roof about 40 feet away from its frame, the other about 20 feet away. The openings in the roof allowed the wind to displace ceiling tiles inside the store.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures
Core Activity : General retail
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009108620078
Date of Incident : 2009-May

A worker was on an extension ladder changing a light bulb when he fell about 20 feet.
Injury Type : Fractured leg
Core Activity : Supermarket
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009111110189
Date of Incident : 2009-May

As an outdoor product cart was moved, it fell onto a worker.
Injury Type : Broken nose, rib injuries
Core Activity : Liquor store
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009029270092
Date of Incident : 2009-Apr

A worker was preparing a new liquor store for opening when he heard a noise outside the front of the store and observed liquid coming through the seal around the door. When the worker opened the door to investigate, he was jumped by a group of seven youths and assaulted. The youths were scared off by three other teenagers who observed the incident and phoned 9-1-1.
Injury Type : Electric shock
Core Activity : Trailer and truck rental operations
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009163730132
Date of Incident : 2009-May

As a worker was adjusting the feed rollers on an older wire feed machine, one hand contacted the unprotected 110-volt power supply. The worker, who was not wearing gloves, sustained a moderate electric shock. This particular type of machine was manufactured with no barrier between the roller adjusters and the power supply.
Injury Type : Fractures
Core Activity : Supermarket
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009163730124
Date of Incident : 2009-Apr

Two workers were placing a deli oven weighing about 500 pounds onto a pallet for disposal. The oven was raised on the forks of a small electric hand forklift. As the workers were pushing the pallet under the oven, the oven became unstable and fell onto one of the workers.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Retail liquor sales
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009147050287
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A man entered a workplace and demanded money from the cash register. The workers complied with the robber's demands, and he left the store.
Injury Type : Suspected carbon monoxide poisoning
Core Activity : Supermarket
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009160310040
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A worker became ill while using a gas-powered pressure washer to clean the inside of a produce cooler. The worker was able to call for help before collapsing outside of the cooler.
See a hazard alert about workers who died when overcome by carbon monoxide from a portable gas-powered device:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/Publications/posters.asp?ReportID=34979
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Wholesale warehouse
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009122700047
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A section of a mezzanine used to store files and other materials collapsed due to a structural failure.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures, internal injuries
Core Activity : Warehouse operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009147230130
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A worker was standing on a pallet being raised by a forklift. The pallet was lifted about 9 feet to a mezzanine when the worker fell to the ground.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Gas bar and convenience store
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157520065
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

Two non-workers were shot by an assailant while they were at the gas pumps, fuelling their vehicle. Three workers were in the convenience store at the time of the shooting.
Injury Type : Injury to head and neck muscles, possible concussion
Core Activity : Building supplies retail
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009158920060
Date of Incident : 2009-Feb

A forklift was pushing a street sweeper, steered by a young worker, into a dry storage shelter. The shelter was a space between two metal storage containers, covered by an unsecured flat roof (20 feet by 19 feet) that rested on the containers. The forklift's mast dislodged the roof, which then struck the young worker's head.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Gas bar and convenience store
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2008095610297
Date of Incident : 2008-Nov

Two young men brandishing a knife and a small axe, and apparently under the influence of drugs, entered a gas bar/convenience store. They ordered the worker to move away from the till, took the cash, and left.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Gas bar
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009143950013
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A worker was conducting the nightly dip checks of underground gas tanks when a person wearing a mask approached from behind. The masked person pointed a gun at the worker and demanded that the worker go inside and open the cash register and the safe. The robber took the money from the register and safe, ordered the worker into the washroom, then wedged the door shut and told the worker to stay inside for 5 minutes. The worker waited, then came out and called 9-1-1.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Gas bar
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009113830031
Date of Incident : 2009-Feb

A shooting took place near the pumps of a gas bar. The lone worker on site was behind a protective barrier and heard the shots but did not see what happened.
Injury Type : Bruised ribs, internal injuries
Core Activity : Lumber distribution
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157520038
Date of Incident : 2009-Feb

A worker was under a forklift changing the oil. The forklift's rear wheels were on wooden ramp blocks, the parking brake was engaged, and the transmission was in reverse. The forklift suddenly rolled forward off the ramps. The rear counterweight of the forklift came down on the worker's chest, pinning him to the ground. The wheels had not been chocked.
Injury Type : Violence in the workplace
Core Activity : Car and truck rental
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009150180012
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

Two customers were in the retail office of a workplace, completing a transaction with the workers. Another person entered the office and shot both customers.
Injury Type : Soft-tissue injury to leg
Core Activity : Supermarket
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009108620002
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A standup forklift struck a second standup forklift, pushing it against a metal barrier and injuring its operator.


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"Trade" incidents from other dates