Case report: #71-268-2025
Issued by: Washington State Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program
Date of report: July 10, 2025
A 63-year-old maintenance worker had been employed by a mobile home park business for 16 years, performing general building and grounds maintenance. A week before the incident, he loaded 11 4-by-8-foot plywood panels in the back of an enclosed body service truck. The panels were stacked against the left side of the truck body. Each panel weighed 35-40 pounds. On the day of the incident, the worker arrived at the company shop a few minutes before his employer. When the employer arrived, he saw the truck’s rear cargo doors open, walked toward them and looked inside. He found the worker sitting unresponsive with his back against a dolly that was strapped to the right side of the truck body. The stack of plywood had shifted to the right and pinned the worker by the neck against a metal cross brace between the dolly’s rails. The employer entered the truck and used his back to push the plywood up enough to pull the worker out. He called 911 and began CPR. First responders arrived and pronounced the worker dead at the scene. Investigators determined that the worker had likely been standing and facing the plywood when something made it shift and fall toward him. It is unknown if the plywood had been secured. Lumber and ladders lying on the truck floor may have presented a tripping hazard.
To prevent similar occurrences, employers should:
- Ensure workers load plywood flat and evenly on the truck floor and secure it with ratchet straps at multiple points. Use a panel rack or trailer if truck floor space is limited or if hauling plywood frequently. Require workers to use a buddy system when loading and unloading heavy cargo.
- Develop and enforce a written incident prevention program to have a service truck cargo policy with requirements to safely organize, secure and store tools, equipment and materials inside vehicle cargo spaces.
- Perform a job hazard analysis to assess service truck cargo area hazards; identify cargo organization and storage management solutions; and develop best practices, including daily checks to keep cargo secure, uncluttered and easy to access. Update the JHA when new vehicles with different cargo area designs are used and when new types of cargo are hauled.
McCraren Compliance offers many opportunities in safety training to help circumvent accidents. Please take a moment to visit our calendar of classes to see what we can do to help your safety measures from training to consulting.
Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication