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International health data reference guide
Full text linkNCHS.Title from caption.Vols. for 1983-1987 issued as DHHS publication.Vol. for 1985 published by the Office of International Statistics, National Center for Health Statistics; 1987 by the International Statistics Staff, Office of Planning and Extramural Programs, National Center for Health Statistics
Worker Dies After Falling Thru Roof Panel
Full text linkOn May 26, 1999, a 32-year-old male construction laborer dies of injuries sustained when he fell thirty feet (30 ft.) from the roof to the floor of a warehouse building that was under construction. The victim along with several of his co-workers was approximately 30 feet off the ground installing roof panels in the northeast corner of the building when the incident occurred. According to witnesses, the victim stepped onto a panel that had not been secured and it gave way causing him to fall. The victim fell to the gravel floor sustaining head, back and internal injuries. The fall occurred at approximately 8:27 a.m. The victim was pronounced dead shortly following the incident. Recommendations: 1. Employers should evaluate each worksite and each job for potential safety hazards and plan accordingly. 2. Fall protection must be provided and utilized whenever the potential of a serious fall exists. 3. A training program needs to be provided for each employee who might be exposed to fall hazards. 4. Employers need to obtain information about workplace hazards to which their employees may be exposed and take appropriate action to protect affected employees from these hazards. 5. The employer should set up a companywide safety training program and designate one person to be in charge of it.Publication Date provided by FACE program; not printed on the reportCooperative Agreemen
Farmer is killed when he falls beneath moving combine
Full text linkA 32-year-old farmer was killed when the combine he was operating ran over him. He had completed making initial adjustments to this machine and was just beginning to use it to harvest grass seed. Another worker operating a second combine in the same field witnessed the incident from a distance. The victim is reported to have exited the still moving combine and was observed walking slowly towards the rear of the machine as the combine continued to travel past him. The other operator and the victim's father believe that he may have stepped off the machine to observe its operation or check on something. The victim fell under the left rear wheel and was crushed. The reason the victim fell remains undetermined but it is believed that he stumbled or tripped on the uneven ground. Recommendations: 1. Farm operators should not assess for seed loss while the combine is operational or moving. 2. Stop the engine before doing any checks, adjustments, repairs, lubricating or clearing any obstruction, or when leaving the cab or operating platform for any reason. 3. Always maintain a safe distance from all moving machinery. 4. Rural emergency medical systems must have the ability to rapidly locate trauma victims and transport them to the appropriate level of care. Federal, state and local agencies should work together to encourage the development and deployment of Enhanced 911 (E-911) technology and systems.Publication Date provided by FACE program; not printed on the reportCooperative Agreemen
Farm tractor overturns crushing part-time farmer/dentist
Full text linkA 41-year-old male part-time farmer/dentist (the victim) was crushed when the borrowed vintage farm tractor he was operating flipped over while attempting to pull out recently cut sapling stumps out of the ground with a log chain. The vintage farm tractor was not equipped with a Rollover Protection System (ROPS) or seat restraints. The victim had used the borrowed vintage tractor many times before without incident. In this incident the rear hitch was missing and the victim preceded to secured the log chain around the tractor seat causing the tractor to flip end over end onto the victim when the power was applied. The FACE investigator concluded in order to prevent similar occurrences' farmers should: 1. Equip any age tractor with a Rollover Protection System (ROPS) and seat restraints. 2. Only use equipment as intended by the manufacture. Read, understand, and follow manufacture's information manual if one is available. 3. Only use the rear hitch to tow loads.Cooperative Agreemen
Laborer falls 48 feet to his death while painting inside of empty storage silo
Full text linkOn September 20, 1996, a 28-year-old male laborer/painter (the victim) fell nearly 48 feet to his death while painting the inside of a storage silo. The 48-foot silo, empty at the time of the fatal incident, is normally used to store tiny plastic pellets used in the manufacturing of plastic soda bottles. It had previously had been sandblasted in preparation for painting. The interior of the silo is accessed by ascending an enclosed fixed ladder system on the outside and entering through a 20-inch opening in the top. The co-worker on top of the storage silo stated that around 2:00 p.m., when they were ending their day, he started the winch to bring the victim up to the 20" opening in the top of the tank. The victim was near the top of the silo when the co-worker heard something snap but was not sure what it was. The next thing the co-worker knew, the victim and safety rope were plummeting 48 feet to the bottom of the silo. Investigation after the event revealed that the end of the winch line secured to the boatswain's chair had pulled out of the improperly positioned U-bolts allowing the victim to fall. A computer printout run sheet shows that the local fire department was called at 14:06 and arrived on the scene at 14:11. After local fire personnel used a fan to clear out hazardous paint fumes in the bottom of the tank, an advanced EMT-firefighter verified that the victim's vital signs were non-existent. Because the local fire department did not have a confined space rescue team, it was necessary to call a department from a neighboring county to extricate the victim's body. The confined space rescue team initially thought the safety rope had broken but found it still tied to the victim with eight to ten feet of slack. The safety rope, comprised of two lengths and sizes, measured 83' 3". Evidence indicates the victim fell just under 48 feet. These facts make it clear that the victim's life could not have been saved with the PPE he was wearing at the time of the fatal incident. The FACE investigator concluded that, in order to prevent similar incidents, employers and employees involved in work at elevations should: 1. Ensure that a boatswain's chair seat is of at least minimum dimensions and properly reinforced on the underneath side by cleats and that it is properly secured to an adequate suspension system. 2. Perform a hazard evaluation at each work site before any work is initiated. 3. Train employees in the recognition of hazardous work conditions and provide methods to control such hazards, including the use of appropriate PPE for fall protection.Cooperative Agreemen
Appliance repair person was electrocuted in a repair shop while diagnosing the problem with a microwave oven--Maryland
Full text linkA 43-year-old male appliance repair-person (the victim) was electrocuted while performing diagnostic tests on a malfunctioning microwave oven. The victim had stopped by another appliance repair shop to pick up overflow work he had left for service. Before departing he brought a microwave oven into the shop and asked if he could spend a few minutes diagnosing a problem with the oven. The victim removed the cover of the oven to access the circuitry. The oven was plugged in and turned on when the victim began to handle the circuitry. The witnesses heard a "pop", saw the victim jerk his hand out of the oven, and fall to the ground. One witness unplugged the equipment while the other witness checked the condition of the victim and then telephoned 911 to summon the emergency medical services (EMS). Paramedics responded within several minutes. The victim was transported to the hospital where he died from his injuries one hour and 15 minutes after the incident. The Maryland FACE investigator suggests that to prevent similar occurrences employers should: 1. ensure that diagnostic procedures performed on electrical equipment are done with the correct testing instruments and in conformance with the directions for their safe use. 2. ensure that repairs to electrical equipment are performed when the equipment is deenergized and/or removed from the live energy sources.Publication Date provided by FACE program; not printed on the reportCooperative Agreemen
Plumber dies of injuries received from a twenty-two-foot fall, off an extension ladder, at a construction site
Full text linkA 40-year-old male plumber (the victim) died after falling approximately twenty-two feet from a forty-foot extension ladder and striking the concrete floor of a wet well. The victim and a co-worker (an apprentice plumber) were mounting four inch diameter PVC pipe to the wall of a wet well, at a sewage treatment facility under construction. Their foreman, who was concerned about others working above them, called them out of the work area. The victim and his co-worker exited the wet well. When the victim and his co-worker began to remove the forty-foot extension ladder, the ladder began to extend on them. To keep the ladder from extending, and making it difficult to handle, the victim decided to descend the ladder and tie the rungs together. As the victim started down the ladder the co-worker was approximately three feet away and not facing the ladder, when he heard the ladder rattle. He turned to see what happened and saw the victim at the bottom of the ladder lying on his side. He was conscious and breathing with difficulty. Others in the area notified the general contractor's office, whose personnel called the rescue squad. A helicopter took the victim to the nearest trauma center hospital, where he died the next morning. The MD/FACE Field Investigator concluded that to prevent similar future occurrences, employers should: 1. Stress to employees the importance of using caution when working from extension ladders. 2. Instruct employees on the importance of tying-off an extension ladder securely or having someone holds the ladder to keep it from moving. 3. Assure that rung locks are properly engaged before using an extension ladderPublication Date provided by FACE program; not printed on the reportCooperative Agreemen
Warehouseman dies when crushed by one of several earthmoving equipment tires he was loading onto a truck
Full text linkOn Thursday, April 16, 1998, a 46-year-old male warehouseman (the victim) was fatally injured when a tire he had lined up in preparation for loading onto a flatbed trailer fell on him. The victim was showing the new operations manager (witness) the procedure for loading heavy equipment (off-the-road) tires for shipment. Before the supervisor arrived to view the process, the victim had placed one tire forward on the flatbed truck. Two other tires were temporarily stored on the dock plate, immediately to the rear of a flatbed truck, which was backed up against the dock. The tires are 106-inches in diameter, 27-inches wide, with rounded bottom tread and weigh 2,813 pounds. To steady the two tires standing upright on their tread, the victim placed a forklift with the forks raised against the sidewall of the second tire from the flatbed truck. Using a pendant controlled electric hoist, the victim placed a special tire handling hook in the first tire and began to move it onto the flatbed. When he stepped from the dock plate onto the flatbed, the second tire fell and pinned the victim and the hoist's pendant controller under the tire. The weight of the tire was too heavy for the witness to remove, so he phoned for help and flagged another warehouseman with a forklift to lift the tire. Three emergency crews arrived within eight minutes. Using a forklift, the other warehouseman raised the tire high enough for rescuers to pull the flatbed truck and the victim to a point where emergency medical crews could attend to the victim. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. The MD/FACE Field Investigator concluded that to prevent similar future occurrences, employers should: 1. Assure storage of materials is stable and does not create a hazard by sliding, rolling or falling over. 2. Proper material handling procedures should be established for handling odd sized materials.Publication Date provided by FACE program; not printed on the reportCooperative Agreemen
Service Technician Electrocuted While Repairing Air Conditioning Unit
Full text linkOn June 17, 1994, a 33-year-old service technician was electrocuted by 220 volts A.C. while repairing a central air condenser unit located outside a residence. The victim had repaired a leak in the condenser coil and was preparing to check for electrical faults. He was kneeling on moist ground in front of the open side of the unit and was in contact with the case on the side of his abdomen. Later testing of the unit revealed that the compressor unit had an internal short, subsequently electrifying the case. The ground wire to the casing had been removed by the victim, and when the compressor shorted out, the victim provided the path-to-ground and suffered a fatal electrical shock. The MO FACE Investigator concluded that in order to prevent similar occurrences, employers should: 1. require that all electrical equipment be de-energized before any repairs are performed; 2. provide employees with education and training in the recognition and avoidance of electrical hazards; 3. ensure that electrical equipment is installed to meet the manufacturers specifications, and ensure that equipment is restored to the manufacturers specifications before any work is begun.Publication Date provided by FACE program; not printed on the reportCooperative Agreemen