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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 Transportation and Warehousing incidents are available online.

Transportation & Warehousing - Incident Summaries

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

Transportation & Warehousing incident summaries from other dates

2009 - (updated October 19, 2009)

Injury Type : Close call  
Core Activity : Auto service
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009165870115
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

A wooden racking system collapsed when a worker gave the racking a push.
Injury Type : Eye injuries  
Core Activity : Mechanical repair of trucks and equipment
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009165870086
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A worker was using a high-pressure spray washer when the hose came off at the wand. The worker was sprayed in the face with hot water and degreaser.
Injury Type : Scratches, bruises  
Core Activity : General trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009163730214
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

Two workers were loading an old refrigerator onto the back of a 5-ton truck when the truck started to roll backwards down a hill. One worker jumped clear of the truck and sustained no injuries. The other worker held on to the back of the truck as it struck two parked vehicles and a telephone pole. The truck did not have wheel chocks in place, and the emergency brake was not adjusted properly.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures  
Core Activity : General trucking
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009129160811
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

A worker was securing a load on a flat-deck truck. He climbed on top of the load (7 to 8 feet above grade), tripped, lost his balance, and fell to the ground.
Injury Type : Hand injury  
Core Activity : Water bombing fires
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009034450244
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

A single-engine water bomber crashed and sank while attempting the first skim fill of the shift. The aircraft's landing gear may not have been retracted.
Injury Type : Serious injuries to head and upper body  
Core Activity : Taxi service
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2009124490092
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

In the early morning hours, a taxi was dispatched to pick up a passenger outside an apartment building. The passenger got into the taxi, pulled out a wrench, and severely beat the driver.
Injury Type : Possible concussion (1 worker); lacerated foot, sprained arm (1 worker)  
Core Activity : Tug and barge operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009161530138
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

A tugboat capsized while towing a fuel barge.
Injury Type : Fatal (non-worker)
Core Activity : Commercial garbage collection
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157410213
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A pedestrian died as a result of a motor vehicle accident involving a garbage truck.
Injury Type : Soreness
Core Activity : General trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157600191
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A tractor pulling two flatbed trailers of 3-high lumber packages took a wide turn to enter an open gate. The trailers and load flopped off the shoulder of the road, turned onto their side, and pulled the tractor cab with them.
Injury Type : Fatal (1 worker); serious injuries (1 worker)
Core Activity : Barge operations
Location : Northern BC
ID Number : 2009154930270
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

Two workers were travelling back to their employer's home base when they were involved in a single-vehicle MVA. Their vehicle rolled over, and both workers were ejected from the vehicle. One worker sustained fatal injuries. The second worker (a young worker) suffered numerous serious injuries.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Equipment transport
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009117670204
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A worker drove a large forklift onto a low-bed transport truck. The worker had exited the cab when the forklift rolled off the side of the trailer and landed on its side.
Injury Type : Fatal (missing and presumed drowned)
Core Activity : Helicopter operation
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009114050277
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A helicopter was helping to fight a wildfire. It hovered above a river, filling a water bucket attached to the aircraft by a long line. Suddenly the helicopter fell into the river, and the pilot (the lone occupant) was swept downstream by the fast current.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Dump truck operation
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009165570099
Date of Incident : 2009-Aug

A tandem dump truck backed in and dumped its load, then pulled ahead with the box still raised. The box caught and broke overhead power and communications lines.
Injury Type : Fatal (2 workers)
Core Activity : Aircraft operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009165830057
Date of Incident : 2009-Jul

A twin-engine airplane crashed with two workers on board.
Injury Type : Cracked ribs, internal injuries
Core Activity : Lumber loading and unloading containers and trailers
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157600141
Date of Incident : 2009-May

A worker drove a lift truck to a row of lumber packages on level ground. He parked the lift truck facing the packages, with the forks raised to chest level. He then engaged the parking brake and exited the cab to check tags on the lumber packages. The lift truck rolled and its forks pinned him against the packages.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Waste container recycling
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009145570076
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A worker climbed into the feed hopper of an energized waste materials baler. The machine cycled, fatally injuring the worker.
Injury Type : Minor injuries
Core Activity : Waste disposal
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009163730177
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A roll-off type disposal truck was travelling on a roadway with its rails raised. The rails struck an overpass, causing structural damage to the overpass as well as significant damage to the truck.
Watch a slide show about a similar incident in which the driver died:
http://www2.worksafebc.com/publications/multimedia/ slideshows.asp?reportid=34316
Injury Type : Respiratory difficulties
Core Activity : Auto service and repair
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009129920155
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A young worker had serious difficulty breathing after aerosol containers of pepper spray (bear spray) were destroyed at an adjacent recycling depot.
Injury Type : Fatal (non-worker); minor injuries (1 worker)
Core Activity : Trucking
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009160530173
Date of Incident : 2009-May

A transport truck collided with an oncoming passenger car and an oncoming transport truck before coming to rest on the driver's side. The driver of the oncoming transport truck was not injured.
Injury Type : Fractured ankle
Core Activity : Warehouse operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009104270141
Date of Incident : 2009-Jun

A worker was driving a powered pallet jack up a slightly inclined dock plate while entering a trailer at a loading dock. As the pallet jack travelled over the hinged portion of the docking plate, its back end swerved into a nearby worker.
Injury Type : Serious head injury
Core Activity : Newspaper delivery
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009145130119
Date of Incident : 2009-May

A worker was run over by his own vehicle, which was parked on a steep hill.
Injury Type : Multiple fractures
Core Activity : Garbage removal
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009163730088
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A worker was standing on the deck of a flatbed trailer, putting the last strap on a load of scrap pallets. He lost his footing and fell just over 4 feet to grade.
Injury Type : Lacerations, contusion
Core Activity : Public bus service
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009112840046
Date of Incident : 2009-Feb

A transit operator was assaulted by three young passengers.
Injury Type : Broken leg (non-worker)
Core Activity : Warehouse operation
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009150180040
Date of Incident : 2009-Apr

A 2-year-old child climbed onto a forklift. The child was standing at the steering wheel with his foot on the throttle pedal. The child turned the key and the forklift started. The forklift was in gear and drove straight ahead and off the end of the 4-foot-high loading dock. The forklift came to rest on its side with the child under the forklift.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Transportation and warehousing
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009112840077
Date of Incident : 2009-Apr

A packaged metal product transported on a forklift sliced through a plastic-reinforced corner and wall of a plastic tote that contained 1000 litres of a concentrated detergent. After the tote was sliced, the forklift operator tipped the tote onto its side to prevent the container from discharging the entire contents. The container was moved from the warehouse area to one end of the parking lot and then near a storm drain at the other end of the lot. This course of action was re-evaluated and the tote was returned to the loading area of the warehouse. A worker who started clean-up of the product in the warehouse without appropriate personal protective equipment was decontaminated by the Hazardous Materials Response Unit. The tote contained a mixture of sodium hydroxide, sodium hypochlorite, alkyl tricarboxylate, and polyacrylate. No one was injured.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Warehouse operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009165830004
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

As a stand-up lift truck was moving an upright support for a steel pallet rack, the lift truck tipped onto its side.
Injury Type : Minor injuries
Core Activity : Gravel truck operation
Location : Central Interior
ID Number : 2009113920045
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A tandem gravel truck was travelling on a public roadway with the gravel box in the raised position. The box got caught on a telecommunications line between two utility poles, causing the truck to flip onto its side on the adjacent sidewalk and boulevard. A 14.4-kV power line was seriously damaged as well.
Injury Type : Lacerations to head (1 worker); minor injuries (2 workers)
Core Activity : Helicopter operations
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009113820062
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A helicopter was being used in avalanche control work (avalanche bombing) when it went out of control and crashed. The pilot sustained lacerations, and the two avalanche control workers on board (one of them a young worker) sustained minor injuries.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : General trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009117930030
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A truck driver was found unresponsive on an asphalt parking lot. He was lying between the tractor and the trailer, and one pant leg was caught on the platform rail.
Injury Type : Stab wounds
Core Activity : Taxi service
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009152480077
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A taxi driver was stabbed by a customer with a knife.
Injury Type : Lacerated foot
Core Activity : Barge towing
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009157490058
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

An 11.5-metre tug was pulling two barges when the tug sank. The two workers who abandoned ship into a life raft were rescued about 3 hours later. One of them, a young worker, sustained a cut foot.
Injury Type : Broken leg
Core Activity : Moving furniture
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157410055
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A worker was preparing to unload office furniture from a raised pallet onto a mezzanine level. As the worker stepped off the forklift, a cracking sound was heard and the load started to fall. The worker tried to get clear but was struck by the falling load.
Injury Type : Hypothermia, bruising
Core Activity : Tugboat operation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009157490050
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A worker fell overboard from a 14-metre tugboat. The worker, who was not wearing a personal flotation device or lifejacket, was rescued about 2 hours later by a fishing boat.
Injury Type : Bruised leg, undetermined injuries
Core Activity : Warehouse operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157450014
Date of Incident : 2009-Mar

A worker was injured when the forklift he was operating struck a building support structure.
Injury Type : Possible exposure to asbestos
Core Activity : Ferry operation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009162590026
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

Workers may have been exposed to airborne asbestos fibres from sprayed-on vermiculite ceiling insulation that came loose.
Injury Type : Fatal (non-worker)
Core Activity : Public transit operation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009154960055
Date of Incident : 2009-Feb

A transit bus was travelling to a green light when the operator heard a scream and felt a bump. The operator stopped the bus and found a person unresponsive on the roadway.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Warehouse
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009128220022
Date of Incident : 2009-Feb

Goods were being unloaded from a trailer. A worker was operating a sit-down counterbalanced forklift in the trailer when the trailer floor gave way and the forklift fell to the ground.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Interprovincial trucking
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009104270043
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

On a highway, a tractor-trailer left the road, flipped onto its side, and struck trees. The operator later died of his injuries.
Injury Type : Bruises
Core Activity : Garbage or recyclable material removal
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009120030034
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A transport truck dropped off a 30-cubic-yard garbage bin. The truck's rail, which was held up by twin hydraulic booms, was not lowered before the truck left the delivery site. The raised rail struck a concrete pedestrian overpass about 10 kilometres away. It had severed at least one telecommunications line before striking the overpass.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Railway maintenance yard
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009070890003
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A worker was using the 5-ton auxiliary hoist of a gantry crane to lower a 600-pound power unit. The hoist's braking mechanism failed and the uncontrolled load fell to the floor, narrowly missing the operator of the hoist and one other worker.
Injury Type : Concussion, multiple fractures
Core Activity : Delivery with truck-mounted crane
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009161950365
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

The operator of a mobile crane was rigging a load at the rear of a flatbed trailer. The worker fell from the trailer to the concrete ramp below, a distance of 4.5 feet.
Injury Type : Fatal
Core Activity : Stevedoring
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009114550009
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A worker was in front of bundles of steel pipe (about 6 inches in diameter and 30 feet long) when the pipe rolled and fatally injured the worker.
Injury Type : Close call
Core Activity : Railway operation
Location : Lower Mainland
ID Number : 2009157410004
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

An unknown quantity of diesel fuel was inadvertently released from a storage tank at a rail yard. The fuel entered a nearby river but was mostly contained by a log boom. Emergency response workers put a second boom into place and cleaned up the spill.
Injury Type : Fatal (non-worker); bruising (worker)
Core Activity : Crane truck operation
Location : Vancouver Island
ID Number : 2009117640008
Date of Incident : 2009-Jan

A flatbed delivery truck equipped with a crane was travelling on a public roadway. As it rounded a blind corner, it was struck by a car that crossed the centre line. The driver of the car (a non-worker) died; the boom truck operator sustained minor injuries.


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"Transportation & Warehousing" incidents from other dates