Rigging Crew Leader Crushed by Light Tower Weight — Massachusetts

Report#: 19MA072 |Report Date: December 18, 2023

Table of Contents

Report summary

On December 28, 2019, a male 34-year-old rigging crew leader was fatally injured while assisting in the construction of a stage light tower. He was helping to position a light tower ballast weight when it slid off the forks of an all-terrain telehandler and crushed him.

Incident Highlights

 

Date

December 28, 2019

Time

9:00 a.m.

Victim

34-year-old rigging assembly crew leader

Industry/NAICS Code

Staging and rigging equipment rental and construction/532490

Employer

Commercial staging and rigging company

Safety & Training

Employer provided comprehensive training

Scene

Outdoor temporary entertainment venue

Location

Massachusetts

Event Type

Struck by falling object

Contributing factors

Key contributing factors identified in this investigation include:

  • Working within the fall zone of hoisted materials
  • Failure to conduct a job hazard analysis
  • Failure to provide required training to equipment operators
  • Lack of coordination of safety and health programs at a multi-employer worksite

Recommendations

Massachusetts FACE investigators concluded that, to help prevent similar occurrences, employers should:

  • Ensure that employees are not within the fall zone of material being transported.
  • Ensure employees routinely perform a job hazard analysis prior to the start of a job task.
  • Ensure that employees who operate equipment are properly trained.
  • Ensure that multi-employer worksite employers coordinate to develop, implement, and enforce safety and health programs at a shared site.

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Date published: December 18, 2023

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