EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During 2001, KY FACE staff identified and recorded 112 occupational fatalities. The categories designated by NIOSH as eligible for field investigation during this period were youth fatalities~~workers~~ (<18 years old), highway work zone deathss, and machinery-related incidents.

In addition to investigative ~~and data management~~ activities, the following are some ~~of the~~ notable accomplishments of the KY FACE Project during its eighth year:

· Kentucky’s occupational fatality rate is elevated (6 deaths/ 100,000 workers) compared to the U.S. occupational fatality rate~~FACE data requests~~ ~~increased 12% from~~ ~~the~~ ~~year~~. (4 deaths/ 100,000 workers).

· Although the total years of potential life lost (YPLL) has decreased in Kentucky since 1997, lost wages in those occupations with fatalities totaled $74.4 million in 2001.

· Male workers die as a result of motor vehicle collisions or falls, whereas female workers die due to motor vehicle collisions or by homicide.

· A new FACE brochure was developed and disseminated.

· A one page “flyer” was developed and distributed to 120 County Extension Agents promoting the use of Rollover Protective Structures (ROPS) and seat belts on tractors.

~~Oral presentations were made at the annual Coroner’s Conference in April of 2001 and the Governor’s Safety and Health Conference in May of 2001 and May of 2002~~.

· A significant number of articles were published and include the following:

a) Struttmann TW, Brandt VA, Morgan SE, ~~Piercy LR~~Piercy LR, Cole HP. (2001) Equipment dealers’ perceptions of a community based ROPS campaign. Journal of Rural Health 17(2):131-139.

b) Struttmann TW, Scheerer A. (2001). Fatal injuries caused by logs rolling off trucks: Kentucky 1994-1998. American Journal of Industrial Medicine. 39:203-208.

c) Brandt VA, Struttmann TW, Cole HP, Piercy LR. (2001) Delivering health and safety education messages for part-time farmers through local businesses and employers. Journal of Agromedicine pp.23-30.

a)d)~~Morgan, SE Cole, HP, Struttman, T & Piercy, LR. (2001) Stories or Statistics? Farmers’ Attitudes Toward Messages in an Agricultural Safety Campaign. (submitt~~ ~~ed)~~

Scheerer, A, Brandt, V. (2001) Interviews with Widows Following Fatal Farming Incidents. Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health 7(2):75-87.

PROGRESS TOWARD PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

Following are some of the goals that were set by KY FACE staff at the beginning of 2001, and, for each, a brief evaluation of progress made:

Objective 1) Continue working with the Labor Department’s Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), coroners, State Police, and other agencies to ensure that a minimum of occupational fatalities go unreported.

Frequent comparisons of findings with the Labor Department’s Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program indicate that KY FACE is missing no cases, and, in fact at times, reveals cases previously unknown to CFOI. Also, frequent contact is made with county coroners to confirm or reject possible cases. In addition, contact has been made with the records section of the Kentucky State Police Headquarters to begin receiving electronic motor vehicle collision data quarterly, to confirm and identify new occupational motor vehicle fatalities occurring within the state of Kentucky and to facilitate more timely data analysis and generation of safety and prevention materials.

Objective 2) Complete First Reports and Supplements (when appropriate) on all occupational fatalities and transmit data to NIOSH in an accurate and timely fashion.

First reports and supplements, as well as data transfer to NIOSH, have been completed in an accurate and timely fashion. NIOSH ~~has~~ developed new software using Microsoft Access to enter and transmit data. The new software wais adequate but there weare problems associated with non-targeted case definitions. With the NIOSH database, up to 65% of cases weare defined as being caused by “other” means of death, therefore, vital variables necessary for data analysis weare missing or incomplete. We have been involved in the FACE coordination committee to discuss and resolve this and other issues. We will continue to utilize our database, Epi-Info for initial first report entry followed by a repeat entry into the NIOSH database until a decision is made whether to upgrade the NIOSH database or not.

It was decided during the last teleconference on May 29, 2002 that the use of the NIOSH database would be discontinued and that each state would maintain their own database. To facilitate the smooth transition into either the Epi Info or the Microsoft Access databases, which are currently used, user group meetings will be held at the FACE annual meeting in 2002. Also, a list will be compiled by NIOSH and distributed to all states that contains the core variables to code occupational fatalities in order to attain uniformity between states.

Objective 3) Complete at least 18 on-site investigations of occupational fatalities in designated categories during FY01.

Due to staff changes, position vacancies, and the nature of the occupational fatalities occurring in Kentucky during this fiscal year, ~~only~~ 45 cases were investigated in 2001~~so far~~ with final ~~draft~~ reports prepared in 2002. One case was machinery~~construction~~-related, involving the release of an excavator bucket from a quick connector coupler. The second ~~case,~~case ~~machinery-involved,~~ was a result of of a construction related fall from scaffolding~~being pinned by a piece of machinery against a pillar~~. The third case involved the death of a juvenile riding as a passenger, as a result of a tractor overturn while farming. ~~The fourth case was a machinery-related crushing incident. The fifth case occurred when a construction worker was killed after a crane overturned on him.~~ A fourth case resulted in the death of a juvenile while driving a golf cart. All ~~five~~ cases were deemed worthy of investigation due to the unique circumstances involved and the future prevention materials that can be generated from the data collected for each case investigation. A new investigator, Medearis Robertson, was hired in May 2002 so we anticipate that the number of case investigations will increase to the projected

number for the next fiscal year.

Objective 4) Continue to develop and expand dissemination methods to communicate FACE results, program activities, goals, and priorities.

a) a) FACE staff (and others) responded to 47 requests for FACE data for the fiscal year 2001-2002, which is approximately the same as in 2000-20001~~slightly more than the previous year at this time (42)~~, indicating continued ~~and increasing~~ awareness of the existence of KY FACE and interest in the project’s results.

b) b) Tim Struttmann taught an Agriculture Safety class and Occupational Medicine 602 course geared towards medical residents and MPH students at the University of Kentucky that relied heavily on KY FACE data acquired over the years.

c) c) The Community Partners for Healthy Farming Project has continued to use KY FACE data in the development of agricultural safety information, particularly messages designed to increase the number of farmers retrofitting their tractors with rollover protective structures.

d) Tim Struttmann discussed the KY FACE Project and Mike Pope presented case history/investigation information on 00KY096 to a class of University of KY MPH students and medical residents on 1-16-01.

e) A new FACE brochure was developed and sent to all 120 County Coroner’s offices along with a FACE the Facts sheets from 2000 and 2001~~1999~~ data. L~~and l~~aminated guideline sheets for determining if a death was work related were also developed..

f) A one page “flyer” was developed and distributed to all 120 County Extension Agents soliciting their help in promoting the retrofit and/or use of Rollover Protective Structures (ROPS) and seat belts on tractors. The same “flyer” was also modified to target the end user and was distributed at a farm safety day.

g) A HazAlert publication addressing measures to prevent hyperthermia during the summer was disseminated to the Bricklayers & Allied Crafts Local Union, the Carpenter’s Local Union, the Teamsters Local Union, the Lexington Migrant Network Coalition and Cooperative Extension offices.

Objective 5) Submit abstracts to professional meetings and publish results.

Oral presentations were made at the annual Coroner’s Conference in April of 2001 and the Governor’s Safety and Health Conference in May of 2001 and May 2002.

Objective 6) Write article based on occupational fatality data in Kentucky to be submitted to peer-reviewed journal (CFOI vs. FACE analysis, data linkage project).

This specific objective was not met but has been carried over for the next fiscal year with modifications (FACE and FARS data linkage) and~~with~~ the appointment of a research assistant dedicated to this project who commenced work in May 2002.

Other articles related to FACE data were written/published (or are in press) and are as follows:

· Struttmann TW, Brandt VA, Morgan SE, Piercy LR, Cole HP. (2001) Equipment dealers’ perceptions of a community based ROPS campaign. Journal of Rural Health 17(2):131-139.

~~Other articles related to FACE data were written/published (or are in press) and are as follows:~~

~~Struttmann TW, Brandt VA, Morgan SE, Piercy LR, Cole HP. (2001) Equipment dealers’ perceptions of a community based ROPS campaign.~~ ~~Journal of Rural Health~~ ~~17(2):131-139.~~

· Struttmann TW, Scheerer A. (2001). Fatal injuries caused by logs rolling off trucks: Kentucky 1994-1998. American Journal of Industrial Medicine. 39:203-208.

· 8.

· BBrandt VA, Struttmann TW, Cole HP, Piercy LR. (2001) Delivering health and safety

education messages for part-time farmers through local businesses and employers. Journal of

Agromedicine pp.23-30.

· ~~Scheerer, A, Struttman, TW. (2002) Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Kentucky.~~ ~~Journal of the Kentucky Medical Association~~ ~~(in press)~~

· ~~Struttman~~Struttmann, TW, Reed, DK (2002) Injuries to Tobacco Farmers in Kentucky. Southern Medical Journal (in press)

· Morgan, SE Cole, HP, ~~Struttman~~Struttmann, T & Piercy, LR. (2001) Stories or Statistics? Farmers’ Attitudes Toward Messages in an Agricultural Safety Campaign. (submitted)

· Reed, DK, ~~Struttman~~Struttmann, TW (2002) Fatal Incidents Involving Farm Equipment on Public Roadways. (in preparation)

· ~~Struttman~~Struttmann, T, Perkins, D, Huitink, G (2002) Summary of Deaths and Injuries in Arkansas Agricultural. (in preparation)

Objective 7) Hire and train a new Field Investigator.

We have hired a FACE Field Investigator in May 2002. She is receiving training presently and will begin new case investigations as NIOSH priority incidents occur. Both Terry Bunn and the new Field Investigator, Medearis Robertson will attend NIOSH investigator training in Morgantown when offered.

Objective 8) Finish qualitative analysis of survivors’ interviews and publish data.

This has been completed and an article has been written and published:

C Scheerer, A, Brandt, V. (2001) Interviews with Widows Following Fatal Farming Incidents. Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health 7(2):75-87.

SURVEILLANCE PROGRAM

During state fiscal year 2001-2002, the KY FACE Project maintained and expanded its network of notification sources and relationships formed in its prior years of operation. The following is a list of currently active sources:

C County coroners and deputy coroners

C Kentucky Department of Labor

C Kentucky Labor Cabinet, Occupational Safety and Health (OSH)

C Community Partners for Healthy Farming (CPHF) Project

C State Vital Statistics Registrar

C Emergency Medical Services offices

C Southeast Center for Agricultural Health and Injury Prevention (SCAHIP)

C Kentucky State Police, Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS)

C County Cooperative Extension offices

C Mining Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)

C Print and electronic media news reports

C~~Kentucky State Police, Fatal Accident Reporting System (FAR~~S)

~~County Cooperative Extension offices~~

~~Mining Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)~~

~~Print and electronic media news reports~~

INVESTIGATION PROGRAM

The KY FACE Project continueds to conduct on-site investigations of selected occupational fatalities during the fiscal year 2001-2002 which feall into the NIOSH-designated categories of machinery related incidents, highway work zones and youth workers (<18 years).

Investigation case reports for the following ~~lowing~~ cases were initiated in 2001 and completed in 2002. ~~Investigations~~ Y~~for the y~~ear 2001 investigations included ~~(check out)~~ a3 machinery-related incidents, a construction-related fall, and 2a youth incidents. The first youth incident involved the death of~~ing~~ a person riding as a passenger on a tractor performing farmwork (see Appendix A.) and involved a tractor overturn. The second youth death occurred when a golf course employee was killed after being thrown from a golf cart. Summaries of these incidents are as follows:

· A 16-year-old female was killed after the tractor on which she was riding as a passenger overturned. She was a high school student; farmed on evenings and weekends. The tractor was being driven by a 20-year-old friend while baling hay on a farm at dusk. The driver and ~~the victim~~the victim had been baling hay all day, and both were experienced farmers. The victim was seated on the fender to the left of the driver. The tractor was a 1969 tricycle-tired~~3-point~~ John Deere, which was well maintained but was not equipped with a Roll Over Protective Structure (ROPS) or a seatbelt. The tires were appropriately fluid filled~~, however the two tires were adjusted so that they were touching~~. The driver was reversing the tractor down a slight slope in an open field in order to stab a bale of hay with an attached ~~hydraulic~~ ~~(?)~~ hayfork. The right rear wheel ran over the hay bale ~~cuasing~~causing the tractor to overturn side-ways on top of the victim and the driver. The driver was pushed clear by one of the tractor’s rotating wheels. The victim was pinned underneath the tractor’s driver seat and died of compression asphyxiation.

·~~A 48-year-old maintenance technician~~ ~~( the~~ ~~victim) was killed when he was trapped between a touret punch press table and a pole. His shift started at 6 am and he had~~ ~~began~~ ~~work at approximately 6:15 am. The incident occurred approximately 15 minutes after initiation of work. He working with the machine~~

· A 44-year-old construction worker (victim) was killed when a 36-inch-wide bucket weighing more than 1000 pounds, detached from its quick release coupler and fell from an excavator, landing on him as he was working in a trench. The victim and another worker had been in the trench preparing it for a pre-formed concrete manhole that they were about to install. Their supervisor (the excavator operator) sat and waited in the excavator, with the engine running, and the bucket raised a few feet above ground level so that it would be out of the way. The second man in the trench had just turned away from the victim when he heard a “click” and turned back to see the bucket fall. He attempted to move the bucket, but could not. He and the excavator operator used the excavator and a chain to remove the bucket and then called for help. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene upon arrival of emergency medical workers.

· A fifteen-year-old golf course worker (the victim) was killed when the utility golf cart he was operating overturned. The victim was employed by the golf club on which he and his family resided and had driven the utility golf cart to his home, located at the top of a hill, to change clothes. Before leaving work for his residence, he contacted a friend who then came to his house on a regular course golf cart (not a utility cart). The victim changed clothes and the victim and his friend left the victim’s home, each driving their respective carts and via public and golf course roadways, traveled downhill towards the

clubhouse. As they descended the hill, they were reportedly racing when the victim lost control of his cart; it left the roadway and struck a pile of dirt. The vehicle became airborne over a small creek, rotated in the air, and the victim landed on his head on the opposite side of the creek. Emergency medical services (EMS) was contacted. A physician on the course at the time arrived at the scene and assisted the EMS team. Efforts to revive the victim failed and he was pronounced dead in the ambulance, while still on the scene.

· A 62 year-old male brick mason (victim) died after he fell approximately 55 feet through masonry scaffolding. He worked for a masonry subcontracting company that was contracted through another construction company to do the masonry work on a new building. The victim was performing ongoing work laying brick at the construction site. At approximately 7:15 AM the victim entered the building he was bricking and ascended to the 4^th floor where he reached his workstation. He stepped out of an opening from the building onto the scaffolding outside. As he did so, he stepped over two mason board’s (20 inches combined width) which were closest to the building and onto the first one of three materials board’s (10 inches wide) located in the middle of the scaffolding. The board he stepped onto broke and he fell 55 feet. He died approximately one hour later at a nearby hospital of multiple blunt force injuries.

PREVENTION/INTERVENTION ACTIVITIES

Upon completion of each investigation report (~~example,~~ Appendix A) A), copies are provided to the employer, if applicable, to the coroner involved, and to any witnesses or others who assisted with the investigation. These reports are also available to others (e.g., presentation audiences) via a request form or the KIPRC website. ~~A sample form is included as Appendix B.~~

FACE Hazard Alerts, newsletters and other NIOSH handouts were distributed at several ~~statewide conferences~~statewide conferences and meetings, (reaching many target audiences, including safety and health professionals, coroners, emergency medical service and laboratory personnel, industrial workers and the agricultural community). Moreover, newsletters and Hazard Alerts were circulated in the Kentucky Lt. Governor’s office, the Kentucky Department for Public Health, the Kentucky Labor Ccabinet and the Central Laboratory Facility. In addition, prevention materials were periodically distributed to the state’s 120 county extension agents, postage free, through the UK Department of Agriculture, which distributes packets weekly to all agents. To reach specific target populations, the distribution of Hazard Alerts included the Bricklayers Local Union, the Carpenter’s Local Union, the Teamsters Local Union, the Migrant Network Coalition, and Cooperative Extension agents.

FACE staff members made oral presentations to the State Coroners'’ Association on April 27, 2001 and at the Governor’s Safety and Health Conference held in May 2001 and May 8-10, 2002. Jane McCammon, MS, Director of the Denver Field office for at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) was the, invited speaker of the KY FACE program and spoke to the State Coroners’ Association in May 2001. She addressed the issue of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning and the need for carboxyhemoglobin levels as a measure for accurate determination of CO exposure as the cause of death in occupational fatalities. At the Governor’s Safety & Health conference (2002), the presentation included two information delivery formats. First, a slide presentation ~~outlined FACE~~outlined FACE program objectives and goals and provided data on demographics, occupations and industries related to KY occupational fatalities. Second~~Afterward~~, the audience was divided into three separate groups and three case investigation scenarios were presented. The groups were prompted to ask questions about their individual cases, then to consider prevention strategies and interventions that may prevent that specific type of occupational fatality from occurring in the future. An evaluation of thise type of presentation format revealed that 95% of the attendees thought that the presentation was easy to understand and 95% of those evaluated believed they better understood the occupational fatality problem in Kentucky. Eighty-two percent~~82%~~ of the conference participants were unaware of the FACE program before the presentation compared withto 87% who were unaware in 2000. This indicates an increased awareness of the FACE program over the past years. With the presentation format utilized, 95% of the attendees thought that the presentation was easy to understand and 95% of those evaluated believed they better understood the occupational fatality problem in Kentucky. Eighty-six percent of conference participants thought the presentation was valuable to their work and 80% thought the presentation prompted them to change safety practices at their worksite (compared to 60% surveyed in 2000). Therefore, the prevention strategies and data provided by the FACE program are of considerable utility in the workplace. TThese presentations also served to expand our network of notification sources (27% requested more dissemination information) and ~~also~~ increased the number of requests for FACE data. T~~he t~~able 1 below compares survey information from the years 20002 and 20020.

Table 1. Survey of Governor’s Safety & Health Conference FACE Ppresentation Aattendees¹.

Year

Valuable to my work?

Better understand the occupation. fatality problem?

Easy to understand?

Prompted me to change work practices?

Aware of FACE before present.?

I would like more information.

2000

64%

95%

90%

60%

87%

n/a

2002

86%

95%

80%

82%

27%

¹Numbers represent the percentage of those surveyed (n=33 for year 2000, n=22 for year 2002) that either “strongly agreed” or “agreed” with the survey question asked.

KY FACE also made an oral presentation in September 2001 at the annual FACE meeting in Morgantown, WV, about the ~~Roll Over Protective Structure (ROPS) campaign that was done in KY.~~ “Collaborations with Academic Partners to Develop and Disseminate FACE-Based Interventions’. With the collaboration of the FACE program and academics, FACE findings were translated into community based interventions and the publication of peer-reviewed articles. Community- based interventions included posters, exercises, meetings and education classes. Furthermore, a logging video was created with the help of the UK Dept. of Forestry. With the cooperation of the Spanish department, the rapid translation and posting of FACE fact sheets, alerts, and case reports in Spanish were accomplished. A collaborative grant proposal was written with the Communication Dept., which was unfunded, but served to further advance our collaborations with that department. The collaboration of the FACE program with a number of departments on the University of Kentucky campus resulted in the review and publication of a number of scientific articles.At the time of the presentation the prevention materials that were developed, field tested, and revised were available in notebook form. They have since been made available on CD. The primary focus is retrofitting ROPS and safe tractor operation. These are ‘ready to use’ materials and include PSAs, exercises, simulations, motor vehicle crash prevention materials, and others. They were designed to be used by local community groups, including health educators and injury prevention coordinators. The CD contains all materials in both Microsoft Word format and PDF format. Copies of the CD are available at no cost by contacting KIPRC at (859) 257-4955, or ~~mpope2@pop.uky.edu~~.

The educational module developed and initiated in 1995 for coroners and deputy coroners was continued. This is an on-going project related to accurate completion of death certificates with respect to work-relatedness.

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS

Kentucky FACE identified 1124 fatal occupational injuries during 20010. The following section provides a descriptive analysis of the KY FACE data for that year.

Notification of Cases

Vital Statistics and newspapers~~Newspapers~~ comprised the majority of ~~were the most common source of~~ initial notification sources (Table 21). The Kentucky State Police Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS), formerly a primary notification source, is no longer able to provide FACE with direct paper FARS reports under a new Federal ruling which states that no information be coded and distributed containing personal identifiers such as names, addresses, or specific crash locations. FACE will begin receiving motor vehicle collision reports, without personal identifiers, from the Kentucky State Police quarterly. Those fatalities determined to be work related can then be selected for analysis.

FACE was informed of 44 42 percent of occupational fatality~~the~~ cases within two days (Figure 1), compared to 4458 percent in 2000~~1999~~. After a case was identified, other sources were used to gather additional details about the fatal incident, including death certificates, Mining Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) reports, and autopsy and toxicology reports. Interviews with ccoroners, employers, law enforcement officers, ~~Mining Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) reports, autopsy and toxicology reports,~~ ~~and interviews with~~ witnesses and family members were completed as well ~~during investigations~~.

Table 21. Initial Sources of Notification for the Year 2001.

Source Percent of Cases

Lexington Herald Leader newspaper~~Newspapers~~ 2249%

Louisville Courier Journal newspaper~~Vital Statistics~~ 1224%

Vital Statistics~~KY State Police Fatal Accident~~

~~Reporting System (FARS)~~ 365%

~~Coroners 4%~~

CFOI~~Kentucky Department of Labor~~ 1314%

~~Community Partners for Healthy Farming 1%~~

~~Medical Examiner 1%~~

~~MSHA 1%~~

Other~~NIOSH~~ 21%

Figure 1. Time of Initial Notification of Occupational Fatality in 2001.

When and Where

Figure 2 shows the number of fatalities that occurred each month during the year. ~~While it had the fewest in 1999,~~ Tthe peak months for fatalities in 20010 were October and November with 14 fatalities each followed by May with 12 fatalities~~as February (n=15)~~. In October, five of the incidents involved farmers- 3 were killed in tractor rollovers, a bull attacked 1, and 1 was accidentally shot with a firearm. Only 2 of the 14 fatalities for November were farm-related. The spike in October could be explained by the drier season. More farmwork, such as hay baling and field preparation, is accomplished in the fall. Four of the fatalities in November included homicides- two stemmed from a single incident when two police officers were serving a misdemeanor warrant, one was a shooting of a grocery clerk and the last incident involved the shooting of a former county clerk by the victim’s former employer. ~~This is at least partially due to two multiple fatality incidents – one that killed four people (plane crash) and one~~

Figure 2. Kentucky Occupational Fatalities by Month of Death.

~~that killed two (explosion). Following closely behind February were September and October (n=14).~~ T~~December had t~~he fewest number of occupational fatalities during 20010 (n=45) were recorded in December. This may be partially due to the fact that many industries shut down over the holidays; therefore, there are fewer workdays.

The days of the week occupational fatalities occurred is shown in Figure 3. Surprisingly, Mondays (n= 15) and/or Fridays (n= 13) did not comprise the most frequent days of the week for when the majority of deaths occurred. Most of the occupational fatalities occurred either on a Tuesday (n= 27) or Wednesday (n= 21).

When the time of death was examined, it was determined that the majority of deaths happened during typical work hours between 6am and 6pm (Figure 4). The highest number of occupational fatalities (n= 32) occurred between 10am and 2pm. On both sides of that timeframe, the number of worker deaths followed closely with 25 deaths recorded between 6am and 10am and 29 deaths between 2pm and 6pm. Surprisingly, quite a few occupational fatalities were also observed (n= 16) between 6pm and midnight.

Figure 3. Occupational Fatality Numbers by Day of Week.

Figure 4. Occupational Fatality Numbers by Time of Day.

Figure 53 shows a map of Kentucky with the number of work-related fatalities that occurred in each Area Development District (ADD). ADD’s are defined as partnerships of local governments, which provide for planned growth. The KIPDA~~Bluegrass~~ District (the Area Development District that includes the metropolitan Louisville area~~Lexington-Fayette County~~) recorded~~had~~ the most fatalities with 251, followed ~~closely~~ by the Bluegrass ADD~~KIDPA~~ (which~~the district that~~ includes Lexington-Fayette~~ouisville – Jefferson~~ County) with 220~~, and Big Sandy with 12.~~. The lowest number of occupational fatalities was recorded in the FIVCO district (n= 1), which encompasses the city of Ashland.

Figure 53. Number of Occupational Fatalities in Kentucky

per Area Development District

(ADD)

~~(ADD)~~

Half~~Sixty-three~~ of Kentucky’s 120 counties had at least one occupational fatality during 2000. Jefferson County had the most fatalities with 20~~sixteen~~, followed by Fayette~~Pike~~ Ccounty with 7~~seven~~, ~~Christian~~ ~~and Pulaski counties with five each,~~ and Floyd~~Harrison~~, Pike~~Kenton~~ and Perry~~Martin~~ counties with four each. Jessamine, Lincoln, and Daviess counties each recorded 3 occupational fatalities. Table 32 shows the fatality rate per 100,000 workers for each of these eight~~seven~~ counties using employment estimates. Floyd and Perry counties had very high fatality rates compared to Jefferson and Fayette counties and these rates are a product of the low number of employed workers in both counties. It is interesting to note that while Jefferson County had four times as many fatalities as Martin County, the rate per 100,000 workers in Martin was almost thirty-six times that of Jefferson. This is due to the relatively high number of employed persons in Jefferson County (368,324) as compared to Martin (2,719). The number of employed persons was 12,512 for Floyd and 10, 674 for Perry County, whereas, the number of employed workers for Jefferson and Fayette counties were 372,387 and 143,992, respectively. ~~A map of Kentucky’s fatalities by county for the five-year period 1996-2000 can be found in appendix D.~~

Table 3. Fatality Rates for Counties with the Greatest Frequency of Occupational Fatalities in 2001.

County	Fatalities	Employment Numbers*	Rate per 100,000 Workers
Jefferson	20	372,387	5
Fayette	7	143,992	5
Floyd	4	12,512	32
Pike	4	25,114	16
Perry	4	10,674	37
Jessamine	3	21,101	14
Lincoln	3	11,174	27
Daviess	3	48,121	6
Total KY	112	1,900,116	6

*County employment estimates are from the 2001 Kentucky Deskbook of Economic Statistics. Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, Division of Research; Frankfort, KY; 2000.

Fatality numbers and occupational fatality rates were calculated for all counties experiencing a fatality in 2001 and are listed in Table 4. Forty-five of Kentucky’s 120 counties had fatality rates that exceeded the state average of six per 100,000 workers. Fatality rates were significantly higher than the nation’s average in several counties, including Nicholas and Lee (41), and Russell and Perry (37) counties. The high fatality rates are a reflection of the smaller number of workers within those counties. With the relatively low worker populations, there are notably high numbers of fatalities.

~~Table 2. Fatality Rates for Counties with the Greatest Frequency of Occupational Fatalities During 2000~~

County Fatalities Rate per 100,000 workers*

~~Jefferson 16 4~~

~~Pike 7 27~~

~~Christian 5 18~~

~~Pulaski 5 20~~

~~Harrison 4 55~~

~~Kenton 4 5~~

~~Martin 4 147~~

~~Total KY 124 7~~

*County employment estimates from the 2000 Kentucky Deskbook of Economic Statistics, Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, Division of Research; Frankfort, KY; 2000.

Table 4. Fatality Rates* and Numbers for Counties Experiencing a Fatality in 2001.

County Fatality

Rate (#)

County Fatality

Rate (#)

County Fatality

Rate (#)

Nicholas 41.14 (1)

Lee 41.08 (1)

Russell 37.48 (2)

Perry 37.47 (4)

Trimble 36.62 (1)

Fulton 32.29 (1)

Floyd 31.97 (4)

Webster 19.89 (1)

Knott 18.73 (1)

Bath 17.76 (1)

Rockcastle 16.96 (1)

Washington 16.87 (1)

Grayson 16.69 (2)

Fleming 16.39 (1)

Logan 7.84 (1)

Woodford 7.39 (1)

Whitley 7.31 (1)

Christian 7.20 (2)

Marshall 7.14 (1)

Greenup 6.38 (1)

Daviess 6.23 (3)

Lyon 31.05 (1)

Jackson 27.58 (2)

Lewis 27.37 (1)

Bracken 27.11 (1)

Lincoln 26.85 (3)

Green 25.88 (1)

Breathitt 25.64 (1)

Pike 15.93 (4)

Jessamine 14.22 (3)

Harrison 14.10 (1)

Garrard 12.97 (1)

Graves 11.96 (2)

Simpson 11.85 (1)

Barren 11.29 (2)

Calloway 5.82 (1)

Hardin 5.64 (2)

Madison 5.52 (2)

Hopkins 5.49 (1)

Jefferson 5.37 (20)

Fayette 4.86 (7)

Laurel 4.48 (1)

Mason 24.81 (2)

McLean 24.12 (1)

Owen 23.55 (1)

Morgan 21.97 (1)

Edmonson 20.54 (1)

Carroll 19.90 (1)

Shelby 11.08 (2)

Scott 11.03 (2)

Ohio 11.00 (1)

Marion 9.43 (1)

Mercer 9.20 (1)

Muhlenberg 8.53 (1)

Campbell 4.46 (2)

Oldham 3.94 (1)

McCracken 3.06 (1)

Bullitt 2.95 (1)

Boone 2.19 (1)

Kenton 1.27 (1)

*Rates were calculated per 100,000 workers using county employment estimates from the 2001 Kentucky Deskbook of Economic Statistics, Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, Division of Research, KY; 2001.

~~Fatality rates were calculated for all counties experiencing a fatality in 200~~0 ~~and are listed in Table~~ 3. Forty-six of Kentucky's counties had fatality rates that exceeded the state average of seven per 100,000 workers. Fatality rates were much higher than Kentucky's average in several counties, including Martin (147), Harrison (55), Bracken (51), and Morgan (43) counties. The relatively low number of workers in each of these counties (Martin – 2,719, Harrison – 7,250, Bracken – 3,897, and Morgan – 4,692) led to the high fatality rates, while, on the other hand, Jefferson County, with four to eight times the number of fatalities, only had a fatality rate of four due to its massive workforce (368,324 employed persons).

~~Table 3. Fatality Rates* for Counties Experiencing a Fatality in 2000~~

*~~County~~*	*~~Fatality Rate~~*	*~~County~~*	*~~Fatality Rate~~*	*~~County~~*	*~~Fatality Rate~~*
~~Martin~~	~~147~~	~~Russell~~	19	~~Lincoln~~	9
~~Harrison~~	55	~~Christian~~	18	~~Laurel~~	9
~~Bracken~~	51	~~Estill~~	18	~~Muhlenberg~~	9
~~Morgan~~	43	~~Trigg~~	17	~~Floyd~~	8
~~Webster~~	39	~~Fleming~~	17	~~Woodford~~	7
~~Cumberland~~	37	~~Rockastle~~	17	~~Warren~~	6
~~Harlan~~	37	~~McCreary~~	17	~~Clark~~	6
~~Wolfe~~	33	~~Jessamine~~	14	~~Graves~~	6
~~Lyon~~	31	~~Marshall~~	14	~~Scott~~	6
~~Adair~~	29	~~Breckinridge~~	14	~~Shelby~~	6
~~Letcher~~	27	~~Henry~~	14	~~Barren~~	6
~~Pike~~	27	~~Henderson~~	13	~~Kenton~~	5
~~Hancock~~	26	~~Greenup~~	13	~~Boone~~	5
~~Boyle~~	26	~~Simpson~~	12	~~Jefferson~~	4
~~McLean~~	22	~~Franklin~~	12	~~Daviess~~	4
~~Whitley~~	22	~~Mason~~	12	~~Oldham~~	4
~~Edmonson~~	21	~~Bell~~	11	~~McCracken~~	3
~~Monroe~~	20	~~Grant~~	10	~~Bullitt~~	3
~~Pulaski~~	20	~~Anderson~~	10	~~Hardin~~	3
~~Lawrence~~	20	~~Bourbon~~	10	~~Campbell~~	2
~~Todd~~	19	~~Mercer~~	9	~~Fayette~~	1

* Rates were calculated per 100,000 workers using county employment estimates from the 2000 Kentucky Deskbook of Economic Statistics, Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, Division of Research; Frankfort, KY; 2000.

Demographics

Demographic characteristics of all~~the~~ workers fatally injured on the job are shown in Table 54. Those killed on the job in 2000 were primarily white (83%; 7% were unknown) and male (97%). Ages ranged from 15 through 93 (one age was unknown), with a median of 44. Most (66%) were married, and at least half had a high school education or beyond (50% of known; there were 29% unknown education levels). During 1999, farmers accounted for 75 percent of those aged 60 and over (n=12), but for 2000, they accounted for only forty percent of these fatalities (n=8). The oldest, at 93 years old, was, however, a farmer. While there were four occupational fatalities in the ~~less than~~ ~~20 age group, only one fell into the newly designated NIOSH target area of youth (<18 years old).~~Ninety percent of occupational workers killed were male, and the workers were primarily white (85%). The number of female deaths increased significantly from the year 2000. Whereas there were only 4 females deaths in 2000, there were 11 female deaths in 2001. Six percent of worker deaths were black. The age of workers killed ranged from 16 to 97 years. The youngest was a 16-year-old farmer killed in a tractor overturn and the oldest worker killed was a 97-year-old farmer killed when an automobile struck him as he was walking across the road to check his cattle. The median age at death was 46 years of age. Sixty percent of those killed were married, while 13% and 12%, respectively, were either unmarried or divorced. Almost half (45%) were high school graduates and 5% had a college degree. Eighteen percent of workers killed had less than a high school education. The majority of deaths, as expected, involved people born in the United States, although two deaths involved workers born in Germany, one was born in Mexico and one was born in Bosnia. Almost all of the decedents spoke English (90%). One spoke Spanish as the primary language, one spoke Bosnian and one spoke German.

When in-state vs. out-of-state resident deaths were examined, fourteen (13%) of the 112 fatal incidents involved residents of 6 other states who died while working in Kentucky. The out-of-state residents were from Indiana (n= 7), Alabama (n= 2), Ohio (n= 2), Missouri (n= 1), South Carolina (n= 1), and West Virginia (n= 1). None of the out-of-sate resident fatalities involved females. There was no individual industry with a disproportionate number of deaths for out-of-state residents in 2001. The greatest number of out-of-state residents worked in both the Construction and Transportation industry divisions (n=4 for each). There were 2 deaths each in the Manufacturing and Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing industries. In the year 2000, the majority of deaths occurred in the Transportation industry. The most common occupation for out-of-state deaths was that of an operator/fabricator/laborer (n= 8, 57%). The most frequent cause of death involved motor vehicles (43%), either motor vehicle crashes or being struck by a motor vehicle.

Table 54. Demographic Characteristics of All Kentucky Occupational Deaths, 20010

Characteristic Number Percent

Total Fatalities 11224 100

Sex

Male 10120 907

Female 114 103

Race

White 95~~103~~ 853

Black 711 69

Other 11 1

Unknown 89 7

American Indian/Alaska Native 1 1

Age

<20 4 43

20 -– 29 182 1610

30 -– 39 2033 1827

40 -– 49 247 2122

50 -– 59 217 1922

60 -– 69 161 149

70 -– 79 45 44

80-89 23 22

>980> 31 3<1

Marital Status ~~Unknown 1 <1~~

~~Marital Status~~

Never married 1515 1312

Married 6782 6066

Divorced 1318 1215

Widowed 22 2<1

Unknown 157 136

Education

Less than high school 2026 1821

High school graduate 5041 4533

Some college 1513 1311

College graduate 68 56

Unknown 2136 19

Country of Origin

United States 101 90

Mexico 1 129

Bosnia 1 1

Germany 2 2

Unknown 7 6

Primary Language

English 101 90

Spanish 1 1

Other 2 2

Unknown 8 7

Industry

Table 65 and Figures 6-84 show the number of workers killed in each industry division (as classified by the Standard Industrial Classification Manual), as well as a comparison of state and national occupational fatality rates. The~~This year, the division of~~ Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing industry~~Transportation/Communication/Public Utilities~~ realized the majority ~~made up the largest portion (19%, n=24)~~ of work-related deaths in Kentucky (n= 26, 23%) and. the occupational fatality rate for this industry remains more than double the US fatality rate (51 deaths per 100,000 workers in Kentucky vs. 21 deaths per 100,000 workers nationwide). Many~~ost~~ ~~(16)~~ of these fatalities~~, as one might expect,~~ were Agricultural machine~~motor vehicle~~- related (seven were due to tractor rollovers with tractors unequipped with a Roll Over Protective Structure (ROPS)). The fatality rate for this industry is high because employment numbers for farmers include only full-time farmers, not those who farm part-time as is the case in Kentucky. Hence, the number of those working in the agriculture industry is underestimated, and therefore, the fatality rate for this division is inflated.

The next highest percentage (2117%, n=241) of fatalities occurred in the Transportation/-Communication/Public Utilities ~~Construction~~ (TCPU) industry, which again is ~~pushing Kentucky’s 2000 fatality rate for Construction 30 percent~~ higher than the U.S. rate (19 compared to 12). Motor vehicle collisions, as expected, were the leading cause of worker deaths in the transportation industry.

The KY Construction industry saw 19 deaths (fatality rate of 16) in 2001, which is 23% above the national~~rate was the same as the U.S. rate in 1999.~~ fatality rate. The majority of construction fatalities were caused by falls. This past summer, two deaths in the construction industry occurred as a result of heat exposure and resultant hyperthermia due to the extreme heat and high humidity conditions at the time. One death was a result of suffocation when the worker became trapped in a ditch collapse.

There was another huge increase for 2001 in tThe KY mMining fatality rate ~~saw a huge increase for 200~~0, making it more than twice~~o times~~ that of the U.S rate. The mining industry The other significant change worth noting is that the Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing industry, which is usually the leading KY industry for occupational fatalities, is third for 2000, with 17 (down from 21 last year). While these fatalities ranked third in number, the Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing industry’s fatality rate in KY was still the second highest (39/100,000 workers). It should be noted, however, that the fatality rate for this industry division is somewhat artificially inflated because employment estimates for farmers include only those who farm full-time. Since many of Kentucky’s farmers have other jobs and farm only part-time, the number of those working in the agriculture industry is underestimated, and therefore, inflates the fatality rate for this division.

was~~Kentucky’s~~ the most dangerous industry ~~in which~~ to be employed in during 2001, as well as in the year 20000 ~~was~~ ~~the mining industry~~. Ten ~~Mining’s 14 fatalities shot its fatality rate up to 55/100,000 workers – more than twice that of the U.S. rate for this industry~~mining fatalities were recorded this past year, which is down from the 14 recorded the previous year, but the fatality rate increased by 10 between 2001 and 2000. The reason the occupational fatality rate increased in 2001 is unclear but fewer people were employed in the Kentucky mining industry (15,500 for 2000; 17,211 in 1999) as referenced by the U.S. DOE-EIA; Coal Industry Annual, 1999-2000, Coal Production, 1979-1992.

Table 65 includes the percentage of workers employed in each industry ~~division~~ for comparison with~~ison with~~ the percentage of occupational fatalities within the given industry ~~in each division~~. This comparison again illustrates the high risk of working in the mining industry, as this division is comprised of less than two percent of the workers in Kentucky, yet accounts for eleven percent of the occupational fatalitieThe highest percentage of employed persons is in the Services industry, followed by the Retail/Wholesale Trade industry and the Manufacturing industry. All three of those industries had low fatality numbers and rates, which makes them the safest industries to work in. In contrast, less than 1% of people are employed by the mining industrys.

and less than 3% in the agricultural industry but their fatality numbers and occupational fatality rates are high, which makes both of those industries more dangerous to work in.

The cause of death for each industrial classification are given in figures 9-18. As expected, the majority of Transportation as well as Mining and Services industry deaths were due to motor vehicle collisions. Ag machines and general machinery caused the greater number

of Agricultural and Manufacturing industry fatalities, respectively. Falls constituted the majority of Construction industry deaths. Homicides were the major cause of death in three industries in 2001. There were 3 homicides in the Public Administration industry, 1 homicide in the Finance/Insurance/Real Estate industry and 2 homicides in the Retail Trade industry. One suicide was recorded in the Wholesale Trade industry. Suicides are included in our database if it is determined that the suicide happened on work premises while the decedent was at work.

When you compare the fatality rates between 2000 and 2001, it is clear that more intervention and prevention measures need to be undertaken in order to reduce the overall high fatality rates in Kentucky. Areas of concentration and concern include the Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing industry, the TCPU industry, the Construction industry and the Mining industry. As well, the factors that contributed to motor vehicle collision, machinery (Ag and other) and homicide related deaths need to be examined more thoroughly.

Number of Fatalities

Finance/ Ins./ Real Estate

Retail/ Wholesale Trade

Public Admin.

Services

Manufacturing

Mining

Construction

TCPU

Ag/ Forest./ Fish.

Figure 6. Fatalities By Industry For The Year 2001.

Table 65. Occupational Fatalities by Industry, 20010 (Rates calculated per 100,000 workers^a)

~~Number of Percent of 2000 1999 1998~~

~~Industry~~^b ~~Fatalities (%) Employment~~^c ~~KY Rate KY Rate KY Rate US Rate~~^d

~~TCPU* 24 (19) 6.3 21 20 20 13~~

~~Construction 21 (17) 6.3 18 14 18 14~~

~~Ag/Forest/Fishing 17 (14) 2.4 39 50 54 23~~

~~Manufacturing 16 (13) 16.7 5 6 5 4~~

~~Services 15 (12) 21.7 4 2 2 2~~

~~Mining 14 (11) 1.4 55 38 34 25~~

~~Retail/Whse Trade 7 (6) 20.7 2 2 3 3~~

~~Public Administration 6 (5) 13.7 2 6 2 3~~

~~Finance/Ins/Real Estate 4 (3) 4.6 5 1 0 1~~

~~Totals 124 (100) 93.8 7 7 6 5~~

^a Percent distribution of employed persons obtained from ~~1) 2000 from~~ ~~Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1998 (Bulletin 2524).~~ ~~US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; November 1999; 2) 1999 from~~ ~~Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1997 (Bulletin 2515).~~ ~~US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; June 1999; 3) 1998 from~~ ~~Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1996 (Bulletin 2498).~~ ~~US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; April 1998.~~1) 2001 from Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1999 (Bulletin 2537). US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; updated August 2001; 2) U.S. DOE-EIA; Coal Industry Annual, 1993-2000; 3) Kentucky FACE Project Annual Report 2000. Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center, 333 Waller Ave., Suite 202, Lexington, KY 40504-2915.

^bOffice of Management and Budget. Standard Industrial Classification Manual. 1987. Springfield VA: National Technical Information Service. (NTIS No. PB 87-100012)

^cThe industries listed do not equal 100 percent of employed persons because of rounding and because they do not include private household workers, and self-employed and unpaid family workers which make up the remainder of employed persons (6 percent).

^dCensus of Fatal Occupational Injuries Summary. US Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2000~~Fatal Workplace Injuries in 1997: A Collection of Data and Analysis (Report 934). US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), July 1999~~.

*Transportation/Communications/Public Utilities

*Transportation/Communication/Public Utilities

^a~~Percent distribution of employed persons obtained from~~ ~~Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1997 (Bulletin 2515).~~ ~~US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; June 1999.~~

Fatality Rate Per 100,000 Workers

Figure 7. Occupational Fatality Rates in the Mining, Ag/Forest./Fish., TCPU, and Construction Industries^a .

^aPercent distribution of employed persons obtained from Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1999 (Bulletin 2537). US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; updated August 2001.

Fatality Rate per 100,000 Workers

Figure 8. Occupational Fatality Rates in the Retail/Wholesale Trade, Services, Public Administration, and Manufacturing Industries^a.

Figures 5-14 show the external cause(s) of death for work-related fatalities by industry. Out of the ten industry divisions, motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) were the leading or second leading cause of death in all but three. Firearms and machinery were also causes of death in most industries. Air transport, the second most common external cause of death for 1999, was not as common in 2000, although a single incident was responsible for all four Finance/Insurance/Real Estate fatalities.

Figure 9. Transportation/ Communication & Public Utilities Occupational Fatalities- Year 2001.

~~Figure 5~~

Machine

Poisoning

Suicide

Number of Fatalities

~~Figure 6~~

~~Figure 7~~

~~Figure 8~~

~~Figure 9~~

~~Figure~~ 10

~~Figure 11~~

Figure 10. Construction Fatalities for the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 11. Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing Fatalities for Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 12. Manufacturing Deaths in Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 13. Services Industries Deaths in the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 14. Public Administration Occupational Fatalities for the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 15. Mining Industry Occupational Fatalities for the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 16. Finance/ Insurance/ Real Estate Industry Fatalities for the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 17. Wholesale Trade Industry Occupational Deaths for the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

Figure 18. Retail Trade Industry Occupational Fatalities for the Year 2001.

Number of Fatalities

External Cause of Death

Figure 19 shows the external cause(s) of death for work-related fatalities as classified by E-code according to the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). Motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) were the leading cause of occupational deaths (20%) in 2001. The number of motor vehicle collision deaths was decreased in 2001 to 22 compared to 39 (33%) deaths in the year 2000. The decreased number observed in 2001 is most likely due to the fact that the classification of a motor vehicle collision fatality is now divided further into 2 specific categories. Motor vehicle collision fatalities are now separated into those that occur either to a person while within a vehicle or to a person struck by a vehicle, whereas, both were included in the same category in previous years in both the Kentucky and national FACE databases. Being struck by an object (n= 14) and falls (n= 13) followed as being the second (13%) and third (12%) major causes of occupational deaths. Ag machine related fatalities (n= 12) still ranked among the principal external causes of death (11%) as well as deaths due to other machines. Eight occupational homicides and 4 suicides were recorded. Explosions and electrocutions accounted for 4 work-related deaths each. Three occupational fatalities each occurred due to suffocation and to overexertion/ heat exhaustion.

Targeted interventions aimed at motor vehicle collision, being struck by something, falls, and machinery deaths warrant further investigation. A case control study examining motor vehicle collisions is currently underway and the hope is that new risk factors, which contribute to these fatalities, will be identified and elucidated. As well, a recent death involving a fall in the construction industry is the target of a current case investigation. Prevention strategies based on these data and newly identified cases will be developed, implemented and disseminated.

Figure 19. Fatalities by External Cause of Death.

Number of Fatalities

Occupation

Table 7. Work-related Fatalities by Occupation in 2001.

Occupation	Number(%)	US Rate^a
Operators, fabricators, laborers	36 (34)	11.7
Transportation, material moving	16 (15)	22.9
Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, laborers	15 (14)	11.7
Machine operators, assemblers, inspectors	5 (5)	3.2
Farming, forestry, fishing	23 (21)	23.5
Precision production, craft, repair	22 (20)	7.6
Technical, sales, administrative support	14 (13)	1.8
Managerial, professional specialty	6 (5)	1.6
Service	6 (5)	2.4
Military	2 (2)

^a Employment averages obtained from Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1999 (Bulletin 2537). US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; updated August 2001. Rates were calculated as the number of occupational fatalities per 100,000 workers.

~~Figure 12~~

~~Figure 13~~

~~Figure 14~~

Occupation

Table 76 represents Kentucky work-related fatalities by occupation, classified using the Alphabetical Index of Industries and Occupations. The Operators/Fabricators/Laborers occupations accounted for the majority of occupational deaths in Kentucky in 2001 (34%). The second highest number of deaths was observed in the Farming/Forestry/Fishing occupation (21%). The Precision Production/Craft/Repair occupations had approximately the same percentage of deaths (20%). The fewest number of deaths were in the Services and Military occupations. The proportion of deaths per occupation division is roughly equivalent to the proportion of occupational deaths recorded in 2000. The US fatality rate is given for each occupation. Kentucky fatality rates were not calculated because the Kentucky occupational category definitions differ from the national occupational category definitions.~~The division of operators/fabricators/laborers~~ ~~accounted for the largest portion~~ ~~(n=~~60, 48%) ~~of the~~ ~~work-related deaths in the state~~. Over half of the workers killed in this division were in transportation/material moving (n=32, 53%). The second highest number of deaths occurred in the farming/forestry/fishing division (n=23, 19%). The majority of these incidents were farming related (n=13, 57%) or logging/tree trimming related (n=8, 35%). Figures 15-21 show the leading cause or causes of death for each occupational division.

The primary cause of death is listed for the major occupational classes (Figures 20- 26). The most frequent cause of death in the Operators/Fabricators/Laborers occupation was being struck by something (n= 10) or by motor vehicle collisions (n= 9). Being struck by something (n= 9) also accounted for the majority of deaths in the Farming/Forestry/Fishing occupation followed by machinery related causes (n=6). A high number of deaths in the Precision Products/Craft/Repair occupation involved falls (n= 5). The Service occupation

recorded three deaths due to homicide and two deaths due to motor vehicle collisions. Motor vehicle collisions (n= 5) were the major cause of death in the Technical/Sales/Administrative support occupation. Both of the deaths that occurred in the Military occupation were a result of machinery and there was no single major cause of death over another for the Managerial/Professional occupation.

~~Table 6. Work-Related Fatalities by Occupation (Rates per 100,000 Workers~~^a~~), 2000~~

~~Occupation Number (%) KY Rate US rate~~^b

~~Operators, fabricators, laborers 60 (48) 20 12~~

~~Transportation, material moving 32 (26) 35 24~~

~~Handlers, equipment cleaners,~~

~~helpers, laborers 25 (20) 33 13~~

~~Machine operators, assemblers,~~

~~inspectors 3 (2) 2 3~~

~~Farming, forestry, fishing 23 (19) 50* 26~~

~~Precision production, craft, repair 16 (13) 8 8~~

~~Technical, sales, administrative support 9 (7) 2 2~~

~~Managerial, professional specialty 7 (6) 1 2~~

~~Service 6 (5) 2 3~~

~~Military 3 (2)~~ ^(c) 8

^a~~Employment averages obtained from~~ ~~Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1998 (Bulletin 2524).~~ ~~US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics; November 1999.~~

^b~~Fatal Workplace Injuries in 1997: A collection of data and analysis (report 934). US Department of Labor, Bureau of the Census; July 1999.~~

^c~~Military population was unavailable. Therefore a rate could not be included.~~

*The fatality rate for farming, forestry, and fishing ~~occupations~~ is high partially because of the undercount of workers in this occupation. A more accurate fatality rate for agricultural workers in Kentucky can be found by using the rate for the agriculture/forestry/fishing ~~industry~~.

SPECIAL TOPICS

Deaths Caused By Trees Agricultural Fatalities

There were 4 deaths of workers involving falling trees in 2001. One case was of a construction laborer who was killed when he saved a co-worker from death by pushing him out of the path of a falling tree but then could not save himself. Other separate deaths occurred when a tree fell on a farmer while cutting and another when a tree fell on a logger during cutting. Of interest, a public utilities employee died while he was cutting down a dead tree. He had trimmed away most of the branches and had cut halfway through the trunk when the base snapped and the tree kicked back to kill him. This particular employee had cut thousands of trees before with the same company. All the workers who were killed were white males: two were 61-years-old, 1 was 25-years-old, and one was 46-years-old.

Of these four occupational fatalities, only one of these workplace incidents involved a logger. The varied incidents observed above illustrate the continued need for prevention strategies aimed at tree safety not only in the logging industry but in other industries as well. In the Master Logger program, a trainee is shown all aspects of logging, including cutting trees safely. This is a very valuable program aimed at preventing deaths in the logging industry. Further access to worker training by those employees working not only in the logging industry but also in any industry that involves the cutting down of trees ought to be made available. Tree-cutting videos or illustrated brochures could be made available either through direct employer training, cooperative extension programs, the local farm bureau, or through other avenues available to the general public with the focus on safety and the correct way to cut down a tree. One aim of the FACE program for the next year will be the generation of prevention materials geared toward the general public in applicable industries and occupations in order to provide education on safe tree cutting.

Deaths due to Hyperthermia

The high temperature and high humidity conditions of last summer resulted in 2 occupationally related deaths due to heat exhaustion and heat exposure. One case involved the death of a carpenter who became hot after being on the job for a while, sat down and was later transported to the hospital where he died. The second death occurred when a laborer was stringing fence along a highway. He collapsed and died at the scene. The heat index (how the temperature feels when the air temperature and humidity are combined) for the day of the second laborer’s death was 97.

With these two incidents in mind, a FACE Hazard Alert was generated (Appendix B) this year in order to alert workers of the dangers of working in extreme heat and elevated humidity conditions by making them aware of the occupational deaths due to hyperthermia which occurred last year. The Hazard Alert also lists key ways to help prevent hyperthermia, such as drinking plenty of fluids and taking frequent breaks. The Hazard Alert was distributed to local labor unions and state cooperative extension offices. The document was also translated into Spanish to target the Hispanic worker population and distributed to the Migrant Network Coalition. The Kentucky Department for Public Health also served as a distribution point. It is

hoped that with these types of prevention materials, workers will be alerted to the dangers of working for long periods of time in heat and high humidity and that deaths to hyperthermia will be prevented.

Although agricultural fatalities have fallen for 2000, the number of fatalities, and particularly the fatality rate, remain high for this industry. Agriculture ranked third overall in number and second in rate for 2000 (ranked first in both in 1999). As mentioned previously, the fatality rate for the Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing division is somewhat artificially inflated because employment estimates for farmers include only those who farm full-time. Since many of Kentucky’s farmers have other jobs and farm only part-time, the number of those working in the agriculture industry is underestimated, and therefore, inflates the fatality rate for this division. Still, a closer look at how these workers are being killed seems warranted. Table 7 describes the 17 workers killed in this industry. Continuing a positive trend, the proportion of occupational fatalities represented by agricultural machines has been steadily decreasing. It has dropped from twenty percent in 1996 to fifteen percent in 1997, to eleven percent in 1998, to nine percent in 1999, to a five-year low of seven percent for 2000. While the percentage of agricultural machinery related deaths has indeed dropped, it still accounts for about half (53%) of the Agriculture industry fatalities.

Of the 9 deaths due to agricultural machinery in the agricultural industry (down from 11 in 1999), all were related in some way to tractors and some included attachments such as rotary mowers. Two other incidents were also tractor related but were classified as an MVC (roadway) and a struck-by (tree limb). There were three deaths due to tractor overturns (four in 1999), six due to falling from or standing next to a tractor and then being run over by it or its attachment, one due to getting caught in a rotating shaft, and one who was struck by a tree limb while driving a tractor. Forty-seven percent (n=8) of all agricultural-related deaths to farmers were age 60 or over.

Table 7. Agricultural Fatalities, 2000

Characteristic Number (%)

Total 17 (100)

Race/Ethnicity

White 17 (100)

Sex

Male 17 (100)

Age

20-29 1 (6)

30-39 2 (12)

40-49 1 (6)

50-59 5 (29)

60-69 3 (18)

70-79 1 (6)

80 and Over 4 (23)

External cause of death

Agricultural machine 9 (53)

Motor vehicle 3 (17)

Animal related 1 (6)

Falling object 1 (6)

Fall 1 (6)

Electrocution 1 (6)

Struck by/Caught in 1 (6)

The following are some agricultural fatality case scenarios:

Farmer returning from tobacco warehouse where he had just taken tobacco to be sold lost control of truck and trailer.

Farmer stopped a tractor with an attached rotary mower to replace lost pin and was run over by mower as tractor began to move.

Man was run over by a piece of equipment while baling hay.

Farmer ran tractor off road and overturned.

Farmer was electrocuted when the aluminum irrigation pipe he was unloading contacted an overhead power line.

Farmer became tangled in shaft of corn picker.

Farmer fell from and drug by tractor.

Farmer struck by tree limb while operating tractor.

Farmer stopped a tractor with an attached rotary mower and was run over when knocked into gear.

Farmer was changing flat front tire on tractor with front-end loader using bucket as a jack and accidentally knocked into gear and was run over.

Motor Vehicle Crashes (MVCs)

The leading cause of occupational fatalities in 2000 was again MVCs (n=39, 31%). For this analysis, information was drawn primarily from the Kentucky State Police’s Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS). Of those killed in MVCs, 38 (97%) were male and 1 was female (3%). Table 8 indicates the types of vehicles involved in these 39 MVCs.

Table 8. Types of Vehicles Involved in MVCs, 2000

Vehicle Type Number Percent

Truck: 31 79%

Tractor-Trailer 14 36%

Pick-up/Van/SUV 9 23%

Straight truck (flatbed, dump, cement) 8 20%

Pedestrians hit by MVCs 3 8%

Bus 1 2.6%

Agricultural vehicle* 1 2.6%

Car 1 2.6%

Golf Cart* 1 2.6%

Unknown Vehicle Type 1 2.6%

Totals 39 100%

*When vehicles that crash are traveling on a roadway, regardless of their intended use, they are considered MVCs.

The types of safety equipment used, if any, was also analyzed using FARS reports. For this analysis, information was only available on 30 of the cases. Of those 30 cases over 23 percent of the victims (n=7) had used no seatbelt or other safety restraint even though it was available, and almost 54 percent (n=16) had used some combination of seatbelt, harness or airbag. In the remaining 23 percent (n=7), safety restraints were not worn because either the victims were pedestrians or there was no restraint available.

ExplosionHomicides

There were four deaths in Kentucky for 2001, which were attributed to explosions. No Kentucky explosion deaths were recorded for 2000. Nationally, the number of deaths due to explosions decreased significantly for the year 2000 when compared to the year 1999. Explosion fatalities accounted for 3% of all fatal injuries for 2000 (U.S. Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, in cooperation with State and Federal Agencies, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2000) compared to 3.6% in 1999. There were 76 total occupational fatalities due to explosions in 2000 (99 in 1999), and 30 of those fatalities were attributed to the explosion of a pressure valve or piping (38 in 1999).

In Kentucky, one workplace fatality involved a worker who was killed in an oil tank explosion. The decedent was attempting to thaw a waterline when a nearby fuel pipe exploded. The worker died minutes later of resultant smoke inhalation and acute carbon monoxide poisoning. The second work-related death occurred when a 45-year old male gas company employee was investigating an oil spill. The decedent was attempting to turn off power at a pumping station when a spark ignited drip gas, a constituent element of crude oil, and caused an explosion. It was believed that high humidity conditions might have contributed to the fatality by retaining rather than dispersing the gas fumes in the soil. The second explosion case resulted in 3^rd degree burns over 96% of the body surface and the victim died three days later. A third occupational fatality involved a steam line rupture which killed a 48-year old male energy plant worker. The rupture caused an explosion and the worker fell to another level. The employee, a painter/insulator who had worked for the same employer for more than 20 years, died of massive head trauma as a result of the explosion. A fourth explosion death happened at a fuel loading plant when a kerosene tank exploded killing the victim instantly. The victim was a 41-year-old male safety supervisor who worked for a fuel tank repair business. This case was not investigated but the newspaper article listed the cause of the explosion as unknown. For 2000, Kentucky saw a decrease in both the number (n=8), and the percentage of total occupational fatalities (6%) due to homicide. This continued the downward trend that began in 1998 (1997, n=17; 1998, n=12; 1999, n=9). While the number of homicides had dropped in 1998, the percentage of occupational fatalities remained the same as 1997 (11%) because of the overall drop in fatalities (1997, n=150; 1998, n=107). Figure 8 and Figure 9 depict total number of fatalities per year and occupational homicides as percent of total occupational fatalities.

The above-described cases serve as examples of the safety precautions, which should be heeded in the workplace area when working with or near explosive materials. These cases were not investigated since they were deemed NOT to be within the NIOSH FACE priority research areas but general prevention measures might be applied to these types of situations. Based on a report out of Alberta, Canada (www3.gov.ab.ca/hre/whs/fatalities/pdf/FR-1999-10-27b.pdf), one typical prevention recommendation might be that a worker should thoroughly check the entire work zone for possible flammable materials when an ignition source is to be used. Included in this recommendation may be to monitor air and other surfaces, such as the ground or a tank, for explosive materials when entering a work zone. Another recommendation would be to self-contain equipment when repairs need to be made. In light of these types of exposure incidents, efforts will be made by the FACE program to develop prevention materials aimed at reducing the number of occupational fatalities due to explosions.

Women

The number of women in the national workforce has increased dramatically over the past several years. In the year 2000, 59,352,000 women and 68,580,000 men were employed (age 20 and above) compared to 51,328,000 women who were employed in the year 1992 (U.S. Dept. of Labor, Current Population Survey, 2000). With the increased number of employed women, it would be expected that female work-related injuries would also increase. However, the number of female work-related injuries has decreased somewhat (Table 8). There were 556,000 women and 1,097,000 men injured at work in 2000 compared to 558,000 women and 1,129,000 men who were injured in 1999. When injury percentages are compared between women and men, the percentage of women injured while working on the job is almost one-half the percentage of men injured (0.937% of women and 1.6% of men). This may be partly attributed to the nature of employment in males vs. females. Men are more likely to be employed in the craft, operator and laborer occupations while women are primarily employed in the clerical and services occupations (Monthly Labor Review, April 1997). Female occupational fatalities nationwide numbered 448 in 2000 while male fatalities numbered 5,467 (U.S. Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, in cooperation with State and Federal Agencies, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2000). The percentage of female fatalities when compared to male fatalities differs by more than ten-fold (0.755% of employed women compared to 7.972% of employed men). Similar to non-fatal injuries, this may more reflect the differences in the types of work performed by both sexes.

Nationwide, in females, the major cause of death was either due to a motor vehicle collision or to a homicide while the major cause of death in males was due to a motor vehicle collision and/or by falls. In Kentucky, the number and proportion of females who died while working in the year 2001 increased significantly from the previous year (Table 9). Whereas only 4 women died in 2000 while working, 11 women died on the job in 2001. Out of those 11 deaths, the majority were motor vehicle related which parallels the majority of female occupational fatalities nationwide. This last year, there was an elevated number of female deaths due to homicide (n= 3), which accounted for almost half of the total occupational homicides in Kentucky for 2001. Of the 11 total female deaths, 5 involved motor vehicle collisions, 3 were a result of homicides, 1 was an incident involving a worker who slipped on a wet floor, 1 was a youth farmer involved in a tractor overturn, and 1 involved a coal miner who was struck by a diesel scoop.

The demographics of the female occupational deaths follow in Table 10 below. Eighty-two percent of female fatalities were white, and most were married (36%) and between the ages of 30- 39 (36%) years. The majority of the women killed possessed a high school education (45%), were born in the United States and spoke English (91%).

There was no specific industry where a clear majority of women employed died (Table 11). Three of the female deaths were in the Transportation/Communications/Public Utilities industry and 2 deaths were in the Retail/Wholesale Trade industry. One death each was observed in other industries including Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing, Finance, Manufacturing, Mining Public Administration, and Services. The occupations of the female decedents varied as well. The majority were in Sales (n= 3), 2 each were in Administrative Support/Clerical and Service.

Other occupations with one fatality each included Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing, Precision Product/Craft/Repair, Technicians and related support, and one of an unknown occupation.

Based on these data and the national data, the FACE program will continue to examine the specific factors which contribute to female occupational fatalities in Kentucky. Deaths by motor vehicle collisions and by homicide in females will receive particular attention and will be more thoroughly investigated in case control studies. The first case control study of motor vehicle collisions was previously mentioned as a new project for the upcoming fiscal year. Another upcoming case control study will examine the issue of gender and violence in the workplace. As new risk factors emerge, prevention strategies will be developed which aim at prevention and reduction of female occupational fatalities.

Table 9. Fatal vs. Nonfatal Workplace Injuries by Gender in Kentucky.

Men

Year	# Employed^a	# Workplace Injuries^b	Workplace Injury Rate (#/100,000 workers)	# Occupational Fatalities^c	Occupational Fatality Rate (#/100,000 Workers)
1997	964,000	22,248	2308	133	13.80
1998	986,000	20,050	2033	111	11.26
1999	954,000	19,457	2040	111	11.64
2000	1,003,000	20,685	2062	120	11.97

Women

Year	# Employed^a	# Workplace Injuries^b	Workplace Injury Rate (#/100,000 workers)	# Occupational Fatalities^c	Occupational Fatality Rate (#/100,000 workers)
1997	860,000	11,428	1329	13	1.51
1998	849,000	9,828	1158	6	0.71
1999	765,000	10,945	1431	6	0.78
2000	897,000	10,800	1204	4	0.45

^a Geographic Profile of Employment and Unemployment, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, U.S. Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, June 1999.

^b Number of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work by selected worker and case characteristics and industry, Kentucky, private industry, 1992-2000, Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Labor, May 22, 2002.

Table 10. Demographics Of Female Occupational Fatalities In Kentucky For The Year 2001.

Characteristics Number Percent

Total Fatalities 11 100

Race

White 9 82

Unknown 2 18

Age

Less 20 1 9

20 – 29 2 18

30 – 39 4 36

40 – 49 1 9

50 – 59 3 27

Marital Status

Married 4 36

Never Married 3 27

Divorced 3 27

Unknown 1 9

Education

Less than High School 1 9

High School 5 45

Some College 2 18

College 1 9

Unknown 2 18

Country of Origin

United States 10 91

Unknown 1 9

Primary Language

English 10 91

Unknown 1 9

Table 11. The Number of Female Fatalities by Industry and Occupation Division in Kentucky for 2001.

Industry	Number of Fatalities
Agriculture/Forestry Fishing	1
Finance	1
Manufacturing	1
Mining	1
Public Administration	1
Retail/Wholesale Trade	2
Services	1
Transportation/Communications/Public Utilities	3

Occupation	Number of Fatalities
Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing	1
Administrative Support/Clerical	2
Precision Product/Craft/Repair	1
Sales	3
Service	2
Technicians and Related Support	1
Unknown	1

~~Four women were killed on the job during 2000, fewer than each of the previous 3 years. Table 9 briefly describes these four women and how they died.~~

~~Table 9. Female Occupational Fatalities, 2000~~

~~Case Age/Occupation/External Cause of Death~~

1~~A 47-year-old travel coordinator was killed in an airplane crash.~~

1~~A 39-year-old maintenance worker was shot by her estranged husband as she exited an apartment that she had been cleaning.~~

1~~A 47-year-old cosmetologist shot herself with a handgun while at work.~~

1~~A 45-year-old truck driver was killed when the truck she was driving left the roadway and overturned.~~

Along with the drop in number of female occupational fatalities, their representation in both homicide and suicide as causes of death became less prominent as well. While they do continue to be represented in both homicide and suicide as external causes of death, the percentage of these fatalities compared to the number of overall occupational fatalities is more symmetric. Women accounted for only three percent of the total occupational fatalities for 2000 and 13 percent (n=1) of the 8 homicides. Men on the other hand, accounted for 97 percent of all occupational fatalities and 87 percent (n=7) of the homicides. Although homicides were responsible for 25 percent of the female occupational fatalities, they accounted for just six percent of the male fatalities. This statement is at least partly explained by the fact that males tend to work in other dangerous occupations, such as operating heavy equipment, more often than females. Suicide, as well, is over represented by women. In 2000 there were 5 suicides, one of which was a woman. Therefore, 25 percent of female workplace fatalities were suicides, whereas only three percent of male fatalities fell into this category.

Out-of-State Residents

Twenty-nine (23%) of the fatal incidents involved residents of 16 other states who died while working in Kentucky. Table 10 provides more detailed information about this group of workers. The highest number of out-of-state residents worked in the TCPU industry division (n=11); all of these workers were truck drivers, except one who worked in construction, and another who worked on communications towers. Like 1999, the most common cause of death was motor vehicle crashes (38%), with air transport ranking second (28%).

Appendix A

~~---------------------~~~~FINAL~~ ~~- For Administrative Use Only--Limited Distribution--Not for Publication----------------------~~

F~~atality~~ ~~Public Health~~

A~~ssessment and~~ ~~KY FACE #00KY051~~

C~~ontrol~~ ~~6 December 2000~~

E~~valuation Project~~

~~TO: Michael Auslander, DVM, MSPH, Kentucky Department for Public Health, Division of Epidemiology, Surveillance and Investigations Branch~~

~~FROM: Mike Pope, DVM, KY FACE Project Manager~~

~~SUBJECT: Logger Fatally Injured by Falling Tree~~

~~SUMMARY~~

A 73-year-old male self-employed logger (the victim) was killed when he presumably was struck on the head by a branch of a falling tree. He and his son, the only other logger on site, had finished a break and had been working approximately 30 minutes when the incident occurred. The son was operating a skidder attached to the base of a tree that had been cut, but was still standing, nearly vertical, hung in the fork of another tree. He was pulling the base away from the stump so that the tree would fall to the ground. The father was watching, waiting for the tree to come down so that he could begin trimming away the branches. After the tree hit the ground, the son got off of the skidder intending to help his father trim the branches, but he didn’t see his father. Searching the site, he found his father unresponsive, slumped forward on his knees, in the branches of the fallen tree. Since there were no telephones on site, the son took a van that they had parked in a clearing nearby to call for help. As he was driving through a pasture toward the landowners house, he came upon the landowner who was loading cattle and asked him to go to the house to call 911 so that he could return to the scene. Upon returning to his father, the son had to cut away some branches in order to reach him. He moved his father out from under the branches and held him in his lap, waiting for help to arrive. Emergency medical services (EMS) were dispatched to the scene after receiving the call at 7:40 a.m., and arrived at 8:00 a.m. One of the EMS workers, also being a coroner, pronounced the victim dead at the scene, immediately upon their arrival. In order to prevent similar instances from occurring, FACE investigators recommend that:

·~~Loggers should attend the Master Logger Program for education regarding Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) logging standards and safety procedures.~~

·~~A clear escape path should always be planned when felling a tree and no one except for the person cutting the tree, or in this case, skidding the tree, should be in the area.~~

·~~A hazard assessment of the logging site should be completed before beginning work to identify and control potential hazards.~~

·~~Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) should be worn at the logging site.~~

~~INTRODUCTION~~

On July 25, 2000, a county coroner notified FACE investigators of a 73-year-old male logger who had been killed earlier that morning. An investigator traveled to the site on July 27 and an interview was conducted with the county coroner who responded to the scene. The scene was visited, photographs and measurements were taken, and the landowner was interviewed. The son was interviewed at a later date by telephone. A copy of the coroner’s report and the death certificate were obtained.

~~INVESTIGATION~~

The victim was a self-employed logger and had been logging for about 35 years. He and his son had been logging this particular tract for about two weeks, and they had been logging for the same landowner for about a month. The hardwood logs were to be sold at a local sawmill and the income split with the landowner.

The weather was hot and dry, and had been for some time. The terrain of this particular tract was fairly mild, with a slope of less than eight degrees in the immediate area. Their usual routine involved arriving at daybreak (about 5:00-5:30 a.m.) and working for a few hours until it got too hot, usually stopping by noon. The father usually felled a tree, both the father and the son trimmed branches, and the son dragged the tree/log to a clearing with a skidder. They typically completed this process for each tree before beginning another. Neither wore any personal protective equipment.

On the day of the incident, they arrived at dawn and worked for about 2 hours before taking a break. Approximately 30 minutes after their break, the son was using the skidder to free up a 22-inch diameter (at the base) 80 feet tall tree that had been cut, but had not fallen, due to being caught in the fork of another tree. He attached a cable from the skidder to the base of the tree, and pulled the base away from the stump so that the tree would fall the rest of the way to the ground. The father was watching, waiting for the tree to come down so that he could begin trimming away the branches. The tree hit the ground after the base had moved about 60 feet from the stump. The 35 feet long 11-inch diameter fork of the second tree in which the first one was stuck broke off and came down as well. Having successfully felled the tree, the son stopped

the skidder and got off to help his father trim the branches, but he didn’t see his father. Searching the site, he found his father unresponsive, slumped forward on his knees, in the smaller (1-3 inch diameter) branches of the fallen tree. The son immediately went to call for help. Since there were no telephones on site, he took a van that they had parked in the clearing nearby and drove toward the landowners home to make the call. On his way, as he was driving through a pasture, he came upon the landowner who was loading cattle, told him that his father had been struck by a tree and asked him to go call 911 so that he could return to the scene. The son then returned to his father and proceeded to extricate him from the branches of the fallen tree, having to cut some branches with his chain saw to reach him. Once he had moved his father from the tree branches, he held him in his lap waiting for help to arrive. Emergency medical services were dispatched when they received the call from the landowner at 7:40 a.m., and arrived at the scene at about 8:00 a.m. One of the EMS workers, also being a County Coroner, pronounced the victim dead at the scene, immediately upon their arrival. Death was thought to have been instant or near instant.

~~CAUSE OF DEATH~~

~~The cause of death on the coroner’s report was depressed skull fracture/cervical spine fracture due to logging accident.~~

~~RECOMMENDATIONS/DISCUSSION~~

~~Recommendation #1:~~ ~~Loggers should attend the Master Logger Program for education regarding OSHA logging standards, safe logging techniques, and best management practices.~~

~~Discussion:~~ The Kentucky Forest Conservation Act requires that as of July 15, 2000 a Kentucky Master Logger is on-site and in charge of all commercial logging operations. Master Loggers are also required to carry their Designation Card with them. Loggers should be aware of OSHA standards and proper logging techniques to ensure a safe work environment. In this case, the son was registered for the program but had not yet attended. The father had not attended nor did he have plans to attend the program, as the son would serve as the on-site Master Logger. For more information about the Kentucky Master Logger Program, contact the Kentucky Department of Natural Resources (502-564-4496).

~~Recommendation #2:~~ ~~A clear escape path should always be planned when felling a tree and no one except for the person cutting the tree, or in this case, skidding the tree (to complete its fall), should be in the area.~~

~~Discussion:~~ Felling trees is dangerous, even with the most skilled and/or experienced loggers. A falling tree can strike objects on the way down or on the ground sending them in unpredictable directions with lethal force. There is also, of course, the obvious potential of being struck by the tree that is being felled. As inconvenient as it may sometimes seem, no one except the feller should be within two tree lengths of the tree being felled. In fact, OSHA regulations state that “no employee shall approach a feller closer than two tree lengths of trees being felled until the feller has acknowledged that it is safe to do so, unless the employer demonstrates that a team of employees is necessary to manually fell a particular tree” [29 CFR 1910.266 (h) (1) (iv)]. Another OSHA standard [29 CFR 1910.266 (h) (1) (v)] states that “no employee shall approach

a mechanical felling operation closer than two tree lengths of the trees being felled until the machine operator has acknowledged that it is safe to do so.” These regulations are intended to reduce or remove the risk of injury from anyone not directly involved with felling the tree.

Initially, the father was the feller, and should have been the only one within two tree lengths. However, once the tree became lodged and the decision was made to use the skidder to complete the task, the only person that should have been within the two tree length area was the son, since he, as the machine operator, was now responsible for felling the tree. The father had no reason to be within the immediate two tree length area while the son brought the tree down with the skidder.

In this incident, it isn’t clear exactly where the father was standing when the son began pulling the tree with the skidder. It is clear, however, that he placed himself in danger by not remaining a safe distance away until the tree was completely down and the area declared safe (by his son, the “machine operator”) for his presence. Being self-employed, the victim wasn’t governed by OSHA regulations - although following them may have saved his life.

~~Recommendation #3:~~ ~~A hazard assessment of the logging site should be completed before beginning work to identify and control potential hazards.~~

~~Discussion:~~ The logging site should be evaluated for potential hazards such as dead, rotten or broken limbs and trees (also known as snags or “widowmakers”), as well as lodged trees and limbs. In addition, a hazard assessment should include factors such as lean of the tree to be felled, location of other trees or obstacles in the area, wind conditions, and slope of the land.

~~Recommendation #4:~~ ~~Appropriate personal protective equipment should be worn at the logging site.~~

~~Discussion:~~ OSHA regulations for logging state that employers should provide employees with appropriate head protection and ensure that it is worn when the employee works in an area where there is potential for head injury from falling or flying objects [29 CFR 1910.266 (d) (1) (vi)]. Again, being self-employed, the victim wasn’t governed by OSHA regulations. However, wearing appropriate head protection could have lessened the impact of the limbs from the falling tree and the fatal injury may have been avoided. Although it is not known for certain whether a hard hat would have prevented this fatal injury, wearing all appropriate PPE should be practiced by all loggers at the logging site, whether OSHA regulated or not.

~~References~~

~~Code of Federal Regulations 29 CFR 1910.266, 1999 edition. U.S. Government Printing Office, Office of the Federal Register, Washington, D.C.~~

-------------------------------------------------- FINAL --------------------------------------------------

Kentucky

Fatality Public Health

Assessment and KY FACE #00KY096

Control May 22, 2002

Evaluation Project

TO: Michael Auslander, DVM, MSPH, Kentucky Department for Public Health, Division of Epidemiology, Surveillance and Investigations Branch

FROM: Mike Pope, DVM, KY FACE Project Manager and

Medearis Robertson, KY FACE Field Investigator

SUBJECT: Construction Worker Dies After Being Struck by a Falling Excavator Bucket

SUMMARY

A 44-year-old construction worker (victim) was killed when a 36-inch-wide bucket weighing more than 1000 pounds, detached from its quick release coupler and fell from an excavator, landing on him as he was working in a trench. The victim and another worker had been in the trench preparing it for a pre-formed concrete manhole that they were about to install. Their supervisor (the excavator operator) sat and waited in the excavator, with the engine running, and the bucket raised a few feet above ground level so that it would be out of the way. The second man in the trench had just turned away from the victim when he heard a “click” and turned back to see the bucket fall. He attempted to move the bucket, but could not. He and the excavator operator used the excavator and a chain to remove the bucket and then called for help. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene upon arrival of emergency medical workers. In order to prevent similar instances from occurring, FACE investigators recommend that:

· Workers should not work under heavy machinery

· A manual-locking pin, although it would require the operator to exit the cab or another worker on the ground to disengage, would dramatically increase the safety of those working with and around the equipment and should be a part of all quick release couplers. Also, the control panel for quick release couplers for heavy equipment should have only two positions, lock and unlock. When in the unlock position, there should be indicator lights as well as audible warnings to alert the operator and others nearby to the coupler’s status. The lights

should be mounted in a highly visible area.

· All equipment should be maintained properly, including routine maintenance as recommended by the manufacturer as well as unscheduled repair and replacement of missing, damaged, or worn parts.

· Trenches deeper than five feet should have the walls shored for workers protection.

INTRODUCTION

On November 13, 2000, FACE investigators were notified of a 44-year-old male construction worker who had been killed on November 10, 2000, when an excavator bucket released from a quick connect coupler and fell on him. On that same day, a telephone interview was conducted with the county coroner who responded to the scene, and an investigator traveled to the incident site. Photographs were taken and the various parties present, which included the construction company’s vice president, a representative from the coupler’s manufacturer, and an independent mechanic brought in to test the equipment involved, were interviewed. A copy of the coroner’s report and the death certificate were obtained, as was a copy of the mechanic’s report.

The victim had been employed by this particular company off and on for about a year, and had most recently been with them for about 2 months. The equipment operator had worked in construction for approximately 30 years. He had been with this company for four years and had operated the excavator involved in the incident for the same duration. The company was sub-contracting for the general contractor on this project. They had been at this location approximately 3 months, and on the specific task at hand when the incident occurred for about two weeks.

The construction company had been owned by the current owners for 12 years and employed about 60 full time employees and approximately another 55 seasonal and part-time employees. They had a written safety manual that was distributed to all employees upon hiring, and conducted jobsite toolbox safety meetings weekly as well as company wide safety meetings at company headquarters monthly. Both the victim and the equipment operator had received the written safety manual and participated in the safety meetings.

INVESTIGATION

The workers began their shift on the day of the incident at 3 p.m., and were scheduled to leave at 10 p.m. The weather was cloudy and the temperature about 45 degrees. They had dug a trench with a hydraulic excavator, and were preparing the trench for a pre-formed concrete manhole that they were about to install. Once they had the trench prepared, they planned to use the excavator and a chain to hoist the manhole and lower it into place. Although the quick disconnect coupler that was installed on the excavator was intended to allow for situations such as this when it may be desired to remove the bucket for increased visibility or lifting capacity, they typically did not disconnect the bucket for this type of procedure unless necessary, and had no intentions of doing so in this instance. Instead they planned to use a ring on the bucket to attach the chain. The bucket, in fact, had not been removed from the excavator for approximately two weeks. There were two men, the victim and a co-worker, in the trench that were grading and doing final preparations for the manhole, while a third, the excavator operator,

remained seated in the excavator waiting for them to finish. During the approximately 5 minutes of waiting, the excavator’s engine was running and the bucket was positioned up above ground level, over the trench, so that it would be out of the way of the men in the trench. The co-worker had turned away when he heard a click that caused him to re-direct his attention toward the sound just as the bucket, weighing more than 1000 pounds, fell from the excavator and landed on the victim. The co-worker attempted to move the bucket off of the victim, but could not due to its extreme weight. The excavator operator attempted to re-connect the bucket to the excavator in order to remove it, but was unable to align the coupler due to the angle of the bucket in the trench. Finally, working together, the excavator operator and the co-worker were able to use a chain and the excavator to lift the bucket off of the victim, immediately after which, the operator went and called the Emergency Medical Service (EMS). Although the EMS response time was only about one minute due to the urban location of the incident, the victim was pronounced dead at the scene upon arrival.

CAUSE OF DEATH

The cause of death was listed as multiple blunt force injuries.

RECOMMENDATIONS/DISCUSSION

Recommendation #1: Workers should not work under heavy machinery.

Discussion #1: Kentucky Revised Statute 338.031 (1)(a)¹ states that it is an obligation of the employer to provide a place of employment free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees. In this case the employee was exposed to the hazard of being struck by the excavator bucket. This risk could have been eliminated if the bucket had been swung away from the trench and lowered to the ground. Workers should be instructed not to position themselves under elevated machine components.

Recommendation #2: A manual-locking pin, although it would require the operator to exit the cab or another on the ground to disengage, would dramatically increase the safety of those working with and around the equipment and should be a part of all quick release couplers. Also, the control panel for quick release couplers for heavy equipment should have only two positions, lock and unlock. When in the unlock position, there should be indicator lights as well as audible warnings to alert the operator and others nearby to the coupler’s status. The lights should be mounted in a highly visible area.

Discussion #2: The excavator being used was equipped with a hydraulic quick release coupler that allows the operator to change buckets or attachments without leaving the cab. Although the use of a manually inserted locking pin may be a minor inconvenience, it would virtually eliminate the potential for inadvertent release of the bucket. A manually inserted locking pin would provide backup protection in the event of hydraulic leaks, switch and/or wiring malfunctions, and unintentional switch movement.

The quick release coupler on the excavator involved in the incident had a three-position switch mounted in the cab that controlled the coupler’s locking mechanism. There were positive stops

at the “lock” and “neutral” positions, and the third position, the “unlock” position springs back to “neutral.” The neutral position cuts hydraulic flow to the coupler allowing for maintenance or repair. While the switch for the coupler involved in this incident did trigger an alarm if the switch was turned to the “unlock” position, upon release of the switch it would spring back to the “neutral” position and the alarm would be silenced. The switch would remain in this position until physically turned to the “lock” position by the operator. There also were no indicator lights to show the coupler’s status. Due to the remote location of the switch (between the seat and the right external wall of the cab, about six inches below the level of the armrest) and its design, while probably not impossible, it is highly unlikely that the switch was bumped by the operator, causing the coupler to release. Also, the warning alarm never sounded during the incident yet was found to function perfectly in tests done after the incident, suggesting that the switch was not moved to the “release” position. In fact, the excavator passed all tests performed and the cause of the release has not been determined. Interestingly, the bucket of this excavator had not been off the machine for approximately two weeks prior to the incident. One possible scenario is that the switch could have been, for some unknown reason, in the “neutral” position without the operator’s knowledge. If turned there from the “lock” position without going to the “release” position, the coupler would remain locked. And, although there is a check valve that prevents the sudden release of hydraulic pressure on the coupler, and, therefore, an unintentional release, this valve, if left to hold hydraulic pressure indefinitely, could feasibly allow a gradual leak to reduce the pressure on the hydraulic lock and eventually allow an unintentional release of the coupler.

Recommendation #3: All equipment should be maintained properly, including routine maintenance as recommended by the manufacturer and unscheduled repair and replacement of missing, damaged, or worn parts.

Discussion #3: According to the Vice President of the construction company, the excavator did receive routine maintenance approximately every 200 hours. At the time of the incident, the hydraulic cylinder that operates the coupler locking mechanism was leaking, but not enough to cause a problem in the opinions of the coupler representative and the mechanic, and regardless, was not from the portion of the cylinder responsible for unlocking the coupler. There were also two springs on the coupler that were designed to help keep pressure on the coupler in the event of a loss of hydraulic pressure. One of these was missing. Again, it was generally agreed upon by the experts on the scene that this had no relevance to the incident. In fact, the excavator was put through a series of rigorous tests in an unsuccessful attempt to get the hydraulic coupler to improperly release. No one has figured out what happened and the incident could not be reproduced. Therefore, none of the defects can be eliminated from possible causes. Hydraulic leaks, missing springs, and other known maintenance issues, should be addressed immediately due to the increased potential for equipment malfunction or failure.

Recommendation #4: Trenches deeper than five feet should have the walls shored for workers protection.

Discussion #4: In this incident the victim was working in a trench that was 6’4” deep with walls that were not shored, which put both him and his co-worker at risk in the event of a cave-in. OSHA regulation 29CFR 1926.652 (a)(1)² states that employees in an excavation shall be

protected from cave-ins by an adequate protective system designed in accordance with OSHA specifications. This pertains to all excavations. Permissible exclusions to this are when excavations are made entirely in stable rock, or in excavations less than five feet in depth that have been examined by a competent person and no indication of potential cave-in is seen.

References

1. KRS 338.031 (1)(a) Obligations of employers and employees. Kentucky Revised Statutes.

2. 29 CFR 1926.652 (a)(1) Requirements for protective systems. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. U.S. Department of Labor.

Year	# Employed^a	# Workplace Injuries^b	Workplace Injury Rate (#/100,000 workers)	# Occupational Fatalities^c	Occupational Fatality Rate (#/100,000 Workers)
1997	66,524,000	1,228,000	1846	5743	8.6
1998	67,134,000	1,159,000	1726	5544	8.3
1999	67,761,000	1,129,000	1666	5582	8.2
2000	68,580,000	1,097,000	1600	5467	8.0

Year	# Employed^a	# Workplace Injuries^b	Workplace Injury Rate (#/100,000 workers)	# Occupational Fatalities^c	Occupational Fatality Rate (#/100,000 workers)
1997	57,647,000	605,589	1050	475	0.8
1998	57,278,000	571,341	998	482	0.8
1999	58,655,000	558,127	952	441	0.8
2000	59,352,000	555,722	936	448	0.8

*# of Days Between Injury and Death*	*# of Deaths*	*Decedent’s Occupation*	*Cause of Death*
1	1	*Truck Driver*	*Jumped from out-of-control truck*
2	1	*Construction worker*	*Heat exhaustion*
3	4	*1.Public utilities employee* *2. farmer* *3.business owner 4.retail salesperson*	*1.gas drip explosion 2.Fall* *3.Fall* *4.Fall*
5	1	*Nursing assistant*	*Motor vehicle collision (MVC)*
6	1	*Carpenter*	*Electrocution*
7	1	*Truck driver*	*Suicide*
8	1	*Highway laborer*	*MVC vs. pedestrian*
10	1	*Farmer*	*Run over by tractor*
14	1	*Forklift operator*	*Crushed by forklift*
15	1	*Police officer*	*Shot in the line of duty*
35	1	*Truck driver*	*MVC*

Industry Division	Total Fatalities	2001 Total YPLL	Average YPLL per Fatality
TCPU	24	484	20.2
Construction	19	444	23.4
Ag/Forestry/Fishing	15	387	25.8
Manufacturing	9	223	24.8
Retail/Wholesale Trade	7	200	28.6
Public Admin.	7	173	24.7
Mining	9	163	18.1
Services	7	135	19.3
Finance/Insurance/Real Estate	2	46	23

Industry Division	Average Salary^a	Total Earnings Lost (in millions)	% of Total
TCPU	$ 39,041	$ 18.9	25.7
Construction	$ 30,959	$ 13.7	18.7
Manufacturing	$ 37,615	$ 8.4	11.4
Retail-Wholesale Trade	$ 37,806	$ 7.6	10.4
Ag-For-Fishing	$ 19,450	$ 7.5	10.2
Mining	$ 43,689	$ 7.1	9.7
Public Administration	$ 28,954	$ 5.0	6.8
Services	$ 25,954	$ 3.5	4.8
Fin-Ins-Real Estate	$ 37,467	$ 1.7	2.3
Total	$ 33,418	$ 73.4	100.0

Source Percent of Cases

* Rates were calculated per 100,000 workers using county employment estimates from the 2000 Kentucky Deskbook of Economic Statistics, Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, Division of Research; Frankfort, KY; 2000.

Occupation

External Cause of Death

SPECIAL TOPICS

Deaths Caused By Trees Agricultural Fatalities

Table 7. Agricultural Fatalities, 2000

Characteristic Number (%)

Total 17 (100)

Race/Ethnicity

White 17 (100)

Sex

Male 17 (100)

Age

20-29 1 (6)

30-39 2 (12)

40-49 1 (6)

50-59 5 (29)

60-69 3 (18)

70-79 1 (6)

80 and Over 4 (23)

External cause of death

Agricultural machine 9 (53)

Motor vehicle 3 (17)

Animal related 1 (6)

Falling object 1 (6)

Fall 1 (6)

Electrocution 1 (6)

Struck by/Caught in 1 (6)

The following are some agricultural fatality case scenarios:

Farmer returning from tobacco warehouse where he had just taken tobacco to be sold lost control of truck and trailer.

Farmer stopped a tractor with an attached rotary mower to replace lost pin and was run over by mower as tractor began to move.

Man was run over by a piece of equipment while baling hay.

Farmer ran tractor off road and overturned.

Farmer was electrocuted when the aluminum irrigation pipe he was unloading contacted an overhead power line.

Farmer became tangled in shaft of corn picker.

Farmer fell from and drug by tractor.

Farmer struck by tree limb while operating tractor.

Farmer stopped a tractor with an attached rotary mower and was run over when knocked into gear.

Farmer was changing flat front tire on tractor with front-end loader using bucket as a jack and accidentally knocked into gear and was run over.

Motor Vehicle Crashes (MVCs)

Table 8. Types of Vehicles Involved in MVCs, 2000

Vehicle Type Number Percent

Truck: 31 79%

Tractor-Trailer 14 36%

Pick-up/Van/SUV 9 23%

Straight truck (flatbed, dump, cement) 8 20%

Pedestrians hit by MVCs 3 8%

Bus 1 2.6%

Agricultural vehicle* 1 2.6%

Car 1 2.6%

Golf Cart* 1 2.6%

Unknown Vehicle Type 1 2.6%

Totals 39 100%

*When vehicles that crash are traveling on a roadway, regardless of their intended use, they are considered MVCs.

Out-of-State Residents

Years of Potential Years of Potential Life Lost (YPYPLL)

Future Aims ofdirections for Kentucky FACE ProgramOccupational Fatality Surveillance

Kentucky