OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #675728
FRANK LUMBER CO INC,THOMAS SCHUMACHER ET AL DBA
AUMSVILLE, OR·
Event description
FARM TRACTOR OVERTURNED ONTO EMPLOYEE
Investigation abstract
EMPLOYEE #1, A FARM WORKER, WAS ON HIS WAY TO A FIELD WHICH WAS TO BE BURNED OVE NOT TURN. THE TRACTOR WAS EQUIPPED WITH POWER STEERING. THE TRACTOR TRAVELLED D IAGONALLY ACROSS THE ROAD AND OVER THE 45 DEGREE SLOPE ON THE OTHER SIDE. AS THE REAR WHEELS WENT OVER THE BANK THE FRONT WHEELS FINALLY TURNED. THE TRACTOR ROL LED OVER. EMPLOYEE #1 WAS THROWN TO THE GROUND AND STRUCK BY THE ROLLING TRACTOR . HE DIED AT THE SCENE OF A CRUSHED SKULL. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE: HIGH SPEED , NARROW WHEEL PLACEMENT (REDUCED TRACTOR STABILITY), LOOSE GRAVEL ON THE ROADWA Y AND THE INEXPERIENCE AND LACK OF JUDGEMENT OF THE OPERATOR. THE TRACTOR WAS NO T EQUIPPED WITH A ROPS AS ONE WAS NOT REQUIRED BECAUSE OF THE AGE OF THE TRACTOR . R. SEVERAL OTHER EMPLOYEES PRECEEDED HIM IN A PICKUP TRUCK. HE WAS DRIVING A 196 3 JOHN DEERE, MODEL 4010, WHICH WAS TO BE HOOKED UP TO A SPRAY RIG AT THE BURN S ITE. THE WHEELS OF THE TRACTOR HAD BEEN SET NARROWLY FOR WORK IN ROW CROPS. EMPL OYEE #1 WAS APPARENTLY TRAVELLING NEAR MAXIMUM SPEED, BRAKES NOT LOCKED TOGETHER , WHEN HE REACHED THE BOTTOM OF A SLOPED FIELD AND TURNED TO MOVE UP ONTO A FRES HLY GRAVELLED AND GRADED ROADWAY. FOR SOME REASON, POSSIBLY BECAUSE THE FRONT WH EELS CAUGHT IN THE FRESH GRAVEL, OR PERHAPS THE OPERATOR WAS THROWN OUT OF THE S EAT AND LOST CONTROL AS HE REACHED THE ROAD, THE FRONT WHEELS OF THE TRACTOR DID
Victim
-
#1 Fatality Age 16 M
- Nature of injury
- 21
- Part of body
- 13
- Event type
- 2
- Source
- 30
- Occupation code
- 479
- Human factor
- 1
- Environmental factor
- 8
- 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.