Hicksgas LLC: OSHA inspections and violations

Incident on Oct 13, 2015 (fatal): Employee is struck and killed by falling propane tank

At 8:15 p.m. on October 13, 2015, an employee was watching the front end of the tanks during their placement on a flat bed trailer using a truck mounted crane. The employee was also unhooking the rigging from the tanks after being placed on the saddles. There were three empty propane tanks placed in the first layer on the trailer. The employee was standing on the tractor frame behind the cab about 37.5 inches above the ground. A second layer of three tanks were being placed on two saddles on top of the first three tanks. The center tank of the second layer could not sit in the saddle. The center tank's legs rested on the saddle instead of the curved tank. The right outer tank was unhooked from the sling. The left outer tank was attached to the back hook and away from the employee. While repositioning the center tank, the saddle fell flat and allowed the outer two tanks to roll off. The left tank was propelled forward because it was still attached to the back chain. The employee jumped and was struck by a tank in midair. The employee was awake and talking but was coughing up blood before being taken to the hospital, where the employee died.