Date of incident: February 2016
Notice of incident number: 2016155070002
Employer: Painting company

Incident summary
A worker was preparing walls inside a house for painting. To apply caulking to a crack near the top of a vaulted ceiling, the worker climbed a ladder that had been positioned on two tiers of scaffolding. The ladder and scaffolding became unstable, and the worker fell to the floor, sustaining fatal injuries.

Investigation conclusions

Cause

• Ladder on scaffold caused scaffold to tip over. As the worker ascended the ladder, the forces applied to the top of the scaffold by the ladder caused the scaffold to become unstable and tip over.

Contributing factors

• Incorrect choice of equipment. An extension ladder was erected on two tiers of scaffolding in order to reach the top of a wall near the ceiling. This was the incorrect choice of equipment.
• Lack of stability outriggers. Scaffold stability outriggers were available but were not installed on the scaffold prior to use, which resulted in the scaffold being an unstable work platform.
• Failure to heed warning. The worker failed to heed the safety warning of another worker.

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