Struck or run over by rolling powered vehicle · Intracranial injuries and injuries to internal organs
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at A-Del Construction Company, 80 Regal Blvd., NEWARK, DELAWARE 19702
on — Intracranial injuries and injuries to internal organs, affecting the head and trunk.
Final narrative
An employee had a three-wheeled sweeper tractor on the hitch of a company-owned pickup truck. The employee exited the truck and tried to disconnect the sweeper from it. When the latch would not budge, the employee grabbed a piece of rebar from the bed of the truck. As the employee pushed the latch up with the rebar, the sweeper popped off the hitch and began to roll away from the truck. The employee chased the tractor as it was traveling down a small hill toward a busy road and was reaching for the brake when the sweeper ran over the employee. The employee suffered two broken ribs, a punctured lung, and bleeding on the brain. The employee also sustained a lump and cuts on the forehead and cuts on the right arm from the bristles of the broom tractor. The employee was hospitalized.
On December 26, 2023, an employee went out to the parking lot to troubleshoot the starter of an SUV. The employee was underneath the vehicle when it started and moved and the employee's middle back area was caught under the front passenger-side tire. The employee sustained a fractured collar bone.
An employee was parking at a patient's home and exited the van to manually open the garage door. The van began rolling backward and rolled over the employee's right leg. She was hospitalized with a fractured leg.
A driver exited their truck so they could provide service for a customer when the truck began to roll away. The driver went to re-enter the truck but fell and was struck by the rear driver-side tire. The employee sustained fractures to their leg and foot.
An employee had been operating a yard tractor. He parked the vehicle and was exiting when the vehicle began to roll, causing him to fall. The employee's hand was then run over by the yard tractor, resulting in fractures to multiple fingers. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was checking for a leak in the air brake system of a semi-truck. The employee had removed the brake chamber when the truck rolled back. One of the tires pinned the employee's right hip against the ground.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 238990)
A crew was relocating a dumpster (containing approximately 200 pounds of demolished wire) to access the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units they were servicing. During movement of the dumpster, a section of carpet tile dislodged from the floor, causing an employee to lose his footing, slip, and fall. He landed on his right wrist, resulting in a fracture.
An employee was cutting a board using a circular saw. The saw pinched, kicked back, and cut the employee's left ring and little fingers. The employee suffered an amputation to the little finger.
An employee was using an aluminum extension ladder to remove gutters at a height of approximately 20 feet. As they were removing the gutters, part of the gutter collapsed and struck the ladder, causing it to move sideways. The employee fell from the ladder and sustained fractures to ribs on the left side and their right forearm.
An employee was using an electric saw to cut a piece of wood for a fence. The saw slipped out of his hand and lacerated his left leg. He was hospitalized.
An employee was erecting a scaffold. A side bracket was not secure. The employee stepped on the bracket to test it and fell 18 feet to the concrete floor resulting in fractures to the ankles and femurs. He was not using fall protection equipment.
A flagger was directing traffic flow in a highway work zone. They were standing approximately 1.5 feet behind the shoulder's demarcating line, next to and slightly behind a traffic drum. As they were directing traffic into and out of the driveway of a parking lot, a car attempted to get around a truck and struck the traffic drum, which subsequently struck the employee, who was thrown 15 feet and landed on top of concrete aggregate. The employee suffered pelvic and rib fractures, T10 and L3 vertebra fractures, and internal bleeding.
An employee was troubleshooting a power washer in the field. Because there might have been water in its fuel, he brought it back to the shop and drained about a gallon of fuel from the tank into a plastic container. Some of the fuel spilled onto the floor and ignited. The employee was stomping out the fire when he lost his balance and tripped into a stool, which caused the plastic container to spill more fuel onto the fire. The employee's pants and shirt caught on fire, and he fell, abrading his knee while trying to get through the flames. As well as the knee abrasion, he suffered burns to the left leg and left lower quadrant of the torso. He was hospitalized.
An employee was backing up a tram (towing powered industrial equipment) to connect it to a trash bin. The employee's left forearm/wrist was caught and crushed between the tram and the bin. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee went to lift a carton and tripped on a different carton that was on the floor. She fell on the floor in the backroom and sustained a fractured right hip, and abrasions to her arm and knee. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.