OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14539118
REPAIR,E GI IV,ELECTRICAL,ELECTRIC SIGN,ELECTRICIAN,ELECTROCUTED,ELECTRICAL WORK
Event description
ELECTRIC SHOCK - DIRECT CONTACT WITH EXPOSED LIVE PARTS
Investigation abstract
TWO EMPLOYEES OF A SIGN COMPANY WERE REPAIRING AN ELECTRIC SIGN AT A RESTAURANT. ND CONTACTED ONE OF THEM AFTER IT HAD BEEN ENERGIZED. HE HAD NOT DISCONNECTED EI THER OF THE TWO 110-VOLT CONDUCTORS GOING INTO THE BALLAST. THE SIGN WAS GROUNDE D, CONSTRUCTED OF METAL, AND WAS DAMP. HE HAD BEEN SITTING ON THE SIGN. AN AUTOP SY INDICATED BURNS ON THE INDEX AND MIDDLE FINGERS ON HIS LEFT HAND AND ON THE W EB BETWEEN THE THUMB AND INDEX FINGER ON HIS RIGHT HAND. ONE OF THEM WAS SITTING ON THE SIGN INSTALLING A BALLAST FOR FLUORESCENT TUBES. THE OTHER EMPLOYEE WAS ON THE GROUND TURNING THE POWER OFF AND ON AND BRINGING PARTS TO THE FIRST EMPLOYEE. THIS EMPLOYEE TOLD THE HELPER TO TURN THE CURRENT O N. THE HELPER WENT TO THE BACK OF THE BUILDING TO THE BREAKER BOX AND ENERGIZED THE CIRCUIT. WHEN HE RETURNED TO THE AREA OF THE SIGN, HE HEARD THE FIRST EMPLOY EE SCREAM AND SAW A PUFF OF SMOKE COME OUT OF THE SIGN. THE EMPLOYEE WORKING ON THE SIGN WAS ELECTROCUTED AND DIED WITHIN SECONDS. HE HAD IMPROPERLY WIRED TWO 6 00-VOLT LEADS COMING OUT OF THE BALLAST. HE MUST HAVE ATTEMPTED TO SWITCH THEM A
Victim
-
#1 Fatality Age 26 M
- Nature of injury
- 10
- Part of body
- 5
- Event type
- 13
- Source
- 15
- Occupation code
- 533
- Human factor
- 1
- Environmental factor
- 18
- 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.