28.01.2015

Fork and pallet goes wrong

A prime example of how dangerous using a forklift and pallet can be occurred on Thursday, in Hamden, Connecticut, when three men fell around six metres and ended up in hospital with serious injuries.

The three, all related, were working on the roof for an Atlanta-based contractor, and were using a pallet on the forks of a telehandler as their method for reaching the roof. We understand that they were coming down when the operator - the wife of one of the men - appears to have moved the machine at height over a very uneven piece of ground, throwing all three to the ground.
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The scene after the injured men were taken away

Fortunately the earth was not stone or concrete, so they look as though they will survive, but with very serious injuries.

The incident occurred directly alongside a railway line, causing Amtrak to shut down the nearside track. The telehandler, a Genie rented from Smedley Aerial lifts, was not affected by the incident and appeared to be in good working order. The cause was almost certainly due to ignorance and unsafe work practices. OSHA did visit the scene in order to investigate the cause and have so far said nothing.

Vertikal Comment

Using a pallet and forklift truck as a form of access is silly enough, but to do so on rough ground with a clearly inexperienced or irresponsible operator on board is tantamount to suicide. Clearly this job lacked any proper plan of work and now an entire family is seriously affected and could so easily have been wiped out.

Given how widely available aerial lifts are - or for that matter proper platforms for telehandlers - it was also frustrating to see the police report describe the incident as three men falling off an aerial lift. Their statement also said that the three men did not appear to have been wearing helmets – as if that would have helped. No mention that they were not using a proper platform, or using harnesses etc...

There is still much work to be done.