OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #221657877

MEADOWLARC WELDING, INC.

MONTEZUMA, KS· 2024-04-11T00:00:00

Event: Blunt force, Blunt force trauma, Chemical, Chemical Reaction, Cleaning, Concussion, Contusion, Cover, Exploded, Explosion, Flammable Vapors, Flying Object, Gas, Head, Inexperience, Insufficient Supervision, Lack of Work Procedures, Mechanic, Metal, Repair, Struck By, Trailer, Ventilation, Welder
NAICS: 811310
Inspection type: Federal Agency
Activity number: #347416943
Employer profile: MEADOWLARC WELDING, INC.
Summary number: 221657877
Report ID: 0729700

Event description

Employee dies of head trauma when struck by flying metal cov

Investigation abstract

At 10:35 a.m. on April 11, 2024, an employee working as a welder was welding an aluminum trailer floor cover plate back on a Wilson Aluminum Straight Cattle Trailer inside a poorly ventilated shop. The employee had cleaned the metal with Denco Brake & Parts Cleaner #1930 prior to replacing the king pin and king pin plate. The brake cleaner container was labeled "May Explode if Heated". An explosion occurred in the front of the semi-trailer as the employee was completing the work. The employee was struck by the floor cover following due to the explosion. The employee died from blunt force trauma to his head.

Victim

#1 Fatality Age 16 M

Event type
14

Occupation code
783

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.