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Neglecting safety precautions may lead to trenching fatalities
Author(s) -
Deatherage J. Harold,
Furches Lisa K.,
Radcliffe Mike,
Schriver William R.,
Wagner John P.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.20010
Subject(s) - medicine , lead (geology) , environmental health , risk analysis (engineering) , forensic engineering , engineering , geology , geomorphology
Abstract Background Trench collapses ranked as the seventh leading cause of the possible twenty‐nine causes of OSHA‐inspected fatal construction events during the period 1991–2001. This study aims to examine why these fatalities occurred. Methods Forty‐four case files from OSHA inspections of fatal trench collapses were reviewed. Results Improper protection of the excavation site where work was taking place was the leading fatality cause. Several organizational or physical conditions were present at many fatal sites; the most frequent was that no training had been provided for trenching. Conclusions Presence of a competent, diligent person at the site would have prohibited most fatalities. The top cited violation was lack of protection, that is, benching, shoring, sloping, trench boxes, etc. (29 CFR 1926.652 (a) (1)). Am. J. Ind. Med. 45:522–527, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.