22.01.2012

Scaffold loading incident

Network Rail in the UK has issued a bulletin and accident report, following a fatal incident at the very start of last week in London. A truck had arrived at the construction site on Reading station to collect a trailer load of scaffold material.

The driver, employed by Tone Scaffolding, arrived on site just before midnight on the Sunday. He hooked the articulated trailer up to his vehicle and it appears that having climbed down form the tractor unit, the vehicle started to run away down a slight incline.

Initial reports indicate that the driver tried to re-enter the truck cab was crushed by the vehicle, which then continued down the incline and came to a rest when it struck a large skip.
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The scene after the truck was removed, the slope was not particularly steep

The emergency services arrived within a few minutes and attempted to resuscitate the man, but he was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.

Network Rail and contractor Costain has launched formal investigation along with the Thames Valley Police, which has impounded the vehicle and is checking maintenance records and other potentially relevant evidence.

Vertikal Comment

All too often we focus, appropriately on safety and risks on site, however it should never be forgotten that the equipment delivery/collection side of the business - no matter if it is Aerial lift/telehandler/mini crane delivery trucks or mobile cranes - is arguably more dangerous.

In fact there is no doubt that there is a far higher risk of having an accident driving to site than when using an aerial lift – as long as you use it sensibly of course. However the delivery and collection process poses a myriad of potential issues, from the vehicle running away as in this sad case, to the unloading and loading – not only can the equipment run away as it descends the ramps, it can also slip off them or with boom lifts the driver can be catapulted out of the platform if the unit descends the ramps to fast and the brakes slam on, and far too few delivery drivers wear a harness and lanyard.

On top of this there are the risks of unloading in the street etc… When it comes to cranes, issues recently have revolved around chassis/carrier maintenance or the lack of it. Perhaps these are areas where more focus from the safety authorities might be appropriate?