Date of incident: November 2019
Notice of incident number: 2019156160017
Employers: Logging firms (3), sawmill

Incident summary

At a logging site, a young worker (a chaser) was walking through a work area on a recently constructed road surface where forestry equipment was operating. As he passed by a loader, the machine swung and the worker was pinned between the counterbalance of the loader and the cut slope (embankment) next to the road. The worker succumbed to his injuries.

Investigation conclusions

Cause

• Chaser was struck by loader in uncontrolled hazard zone. The chaser was directed by a supervisor to walk through a hazard area where the processor and the loader were operating, in order to obtain fuel for the yarder. Operation of the loader resumed while the chaser was still in the hazard area.

Contributing factors

• Hazard control was inadequate. The high hazard to workers on the ground from the forestry equipment at the cutblock was managed through an administrative control in the form of an undocumented communication system. The system had several flaws. As the chaser walked through the hazardous operating areas and the high‑danger area around the loader, he could not continuously be seen by the equipment operators and was unable to communicate with them directly via radio. There was no all‑clear signal to inform equipment operators that the chaser was clear of danger and that work could resume. The loader operator resumed operating the loader while the chaser was still in the loader’s high‑danger area.
• Poor planning resulted in phase congestion hazards. The workplace was not planned and set up in a manner that optimized workers’ safety. The phase congestion that resulted from simultaneously conducting four phases of work within an area less than 90 metres in length at the roadside forestry operation led to unsafe working conditions for all workers assigned job duties on the roadway. In addition, yarding, processing, decking, and loading operations commenced before roadbuilding was complete. The cut slope was not sloped and ditches were not installed, resulting in a very narrow road width for all vehicle and foot traffic. The roadside operation did not allow for adequate separation of equipment, and the specific hazard areas associated with individual machines overlapped. The roadway was not wide enough for the loader to safely turn and load the log transporter without substantially contacting the cut slope. Log loads were driven out of the loading area even before binders were installed. Unprotected workers on the ground were exposed to hazards from the processor and the loader. There was no safe walkway through the workplace. Planning did not provide a safe working area. The hazards associated with working and walking on the ground had not been eliminated or effectively controlled.
• Health and safety programs were ineffective. Several work practices at the cutblock did not comply with the written health and safety programs of two of the employers involved. In addition, manufacturers’ recommendations and key provisions of the Workers Compensation Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation were not reflected in the employers’ health and safety programs or were not followed in the workplace. These problems were not detected or corrected. The safety meeting and the inspection conducted at the worksite did not identify the extreme risk of injury to workers on the ground in close proximity to operating equipment. After the chaser was seriously injured, work was allowed to continue before an investigation took place and a plan for corrective action was put in place to protect the other workers and ensure that a similar incident did not occur.
• Adequate PPE was not provided. The chaser was not wearing high‑visibility protective clothing when he was struck by the loader. He was not provided with any such clothing by his employer. The employer’s written health and safety program required workers to supply their own high‑visibility PPE, contrary to the requirements of the Regulation. Of the two firms whose health and safety programs were in effect at the site, neither recognized or addressed this issue prior to or during forestry operations at the workplace.

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