OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14201784
HIGH WIND,BUILDING COLLAPSE,PINNED,CONSTRUCTION
Event description
EMPLOYEE PINNED BY FALLING WALL WHEN TOWNHOUSE COLLAPSED
Investigation abstract
ON APRIL 1, 1987, EMPLOYEE #1 WAS ADJUSTING WINDOWS IN THE FRONT INTERIOR OF A T IT HAD BEEN ADEQUATELY BRACED AGAINST ANY FORSEEABLE CONDITION. THE ACCIDENT WAS CAUSED BY SUDDEN UNEXPECTED WEATHER CONDITIONS (WIND GUSTS). NO VIOLATION OF OS HA STANDARDS WAS EVIDENT. OWNHOUSE UNDER CONSTRUCTION. THE WEATHER WAS OVERCAST AND WINDY. WITNESSES SAID 3 OR 4 VERY STRONG WIND GUSTS STRUCK THE UNIT, WHICH WAS RECESSED FROM ADJACENT UNITS, CAUSING IT TO "FOLD OVER" WITHOUT WARNING. EMPLOYEE #1 WAS TRAPPED BETWEE N THE 2ND FLOOR JOISTS AND THE FRONT WALL. HE WAS FREED WITHIN AN HOUR AND TRANS PORTED, IN STABLE CONDITION, TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SHOCK/TRAUMA UNIT WIT H MULTIPLE INJURIES. THE UNIT HAD BEEN TEMPORARILY BRACED WITH 2 BY 4S UNTIL THE INSTALLATION OF THE CORE WALLS. THE CORE WALLS WOULD HAVE SECURED THE UNIT TO O THER ADJACENT UNITS. A BUILDING INSPECTOR FROM THE LOCAL AUTHORITY STATED THE UN
Victim
-
#1 Hospitalized Age 38 M
- Nature of injury
- 12
- Part of body
- 19
- Event type
- 2
- Source
- 8
- Occupation code
- 567
- Human factor
- 1
- Environmental factor
- 17
- Task assigned
- 1
Codes shown verbatim from OSHA's accident-investigation database. A human-readable decoder is coming in a future release once the accident_lookup2 dictionary is loaded.