A man fixing a sign from a bucket truck/truck mounted lift died yesterday when a passing box van crashed into the platform in Willoughby, Ohio- North East of Cleveland.
The man, 30, was installing a new light bulb into a sign at a jewellery store in the historic downtown area of the town, his platform was set up in a parking spot on the street, but the articulated knuckle was, we understand, protruding into the traffic lane at height low enough to catch the top of the truck. As a result, he was thrown out of the bucket and landed on a parked car. The emergency services arrived in minutes but found that he had sustained serious injuries. He was rushed to hospital but pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
The man worked for local company Heritage Sign & Lighting, which is a franchise of the long established national sign company Yesco, which installed the famous welcome to Las Vegas sign in the 1930s. We can only assume that this is yet another example of a platform user not wearing an attached harness?
It looks as though the red shackle is the harness attachment point, if so it is intact
Yesco president Melinda Arko issued a statement saying: “It is with deep sadness that Heritage Sign & Lighting, (trading as Yesco Cleveland a franchise of Yesco) confirms that an employee tragically lost their life on Monday, July 28th, 2025, while on duty at a customer site.”
“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the employee’s family, friends, and colleagues during this incredibly difficult time. We are doing everything we can to support those affected by this tragedy.”
“An investigation is currently underway, and we are cooperating fully with local authorities to determine the cause of the incident. Out of respect for the family’s privacy, we are not releasing the employee’s name at this time.”
“Heritage places the highest priority on the safety and well-being of our employees. We are reviewing our safety protocols and will take any necessary steps to prevent a similar incident from occurring in the future.”
“We kindly ask the media and public to respect the privacy of the family and our employees as we grieve this loss."
Vertikal Comment
This is the second incident of a person being thrown from the platform that we have covered in the past week, and you can be sure that there were many that we did not hear of. Conversely last month a man was relatively unhurt after a truck crashed into his platform thanks to his harness and lanyard. See: Harness life saver
Hopefully the investigation reports from these incidents will be published in full and include details on whether the falls were cased by a lack of a harness, or the failure of an anchor point or lanyard. In the meantime, if you are using a boom type lift, wear a harness with a short lanyard and attach it to the anchor point! And if setting up in the street take note of the space needed to operate and cordon it off.
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