Gail Materials, Inc.: OSHA inspections and violations

Incident on Jul 23, 2004: Employee's hand fractured by falling load

At approximately 8:30 a.m. on July 23, 2004, Employee #1 of Gail Materials, was delivering gravel to a construction site of a recreational ballpark complex. He dumped the contents of his transfer truck, a CH600 Mack truck Number 719, at the infield and proceeded to a staging area west of the ballpark. Here, Employee #1 loaded the soil box containing approximately 11,000 pounds of gravel onto his t ruck. This was an automatic procedure lined up the box's four bottom-mounted gui de wheels with the truck's rail assembly and activating the truck's electric mot or. The box would be conveyed onto the truck. The box's two rear guide wheels be came dislodged and the box hung over by four inches. Initially, Employee #1 and the general contractor used a front end loader to try to lift and realign the bo x's rear guide wheels. Two, 2 in. by 4 in. boards were stacked face down in the Loader's bucket to lift the box without damaging its electric switch mechanism. However, one front end loader was insufficient to lift the box. Another front en d loader was brought in. In all, five employees were at the site; three from the general contractor, Employee #1, and one independent driver. The two front end loaders, one positioned on each corner of the box, lifting it. Employee #1 then activated the truck's electric motor by reaching his hand up under the box. At t he same time, the box shifted pinning Employee #1's hand underneath, fracturing it.