Struck-By, Caught-In or Between and Fall Protection

6.1 Struck-By Hazards

OSHA names being struck by objects as a leading cause of construction deaths. OSHA once estimated that about 75 percent of struck-by deaths involve heavy equipment such as trucks and cranes. A safety and health program must therefore have ways to limit or remove each way in which a worker can be struck. Struck-by accidents are most often associated with:

• vehicles
• falling or flying objects
• masonry walls

Heavy vehicles

When vehicle safety practices are not followed, workers can be pinned between a vehicle and a wall or other fixed surface, struck by the swinging arm of a backhoe, crushed under an overturned vehicle and so on. Near a public road, workers can also be hit by trucks and cars.

• Fit audible back-up alarms to heavy construction vehicles and keep them working, so that nearby workers are warned that a vehicle is reversing.
• Use a trained signaller where the driver cannot see behind.
• Chock the wheels of a vehicle that is parked on a slope so that it cannot roll.
• Wear high visibility clothing and keep separate routes for people and vehicles.

Falling or flying objects

Workers are at risk from falling objects when they work under cranes, scaffolds or overhead electrical line work. Flying objects come from power tools and from work such as pushing, pulling or prying that can throw material into the air.

OSHA requires employers to:

• require hard hats or helmets when appropriate
• train workers to stack material so that it does not slide, fall or collapse, and enforce the practice
• install protective devices on site, such as toe boards on elevated platforms and walkways (a toe board is a guard along the lower edge of a platform that keeps tools and objects from falling, and counts as an engineering control)
• install debris nets under overhead work

Working around cranes and hoists

It is extremely dangerous to work under heavy equipment, especially while it is working. Debris can fall from a swinging bucket, a crane can break something loose and send it flying, and a hoist that fails drops its load.

• Never let workers work under loads that are being moved.
• Barricade areas and post warning signs to keep non-essential workers and outsiders away from overhead equipment.
• Inspect cranes and hoists before each use.
• Never exceed the lifting capacity of a crane or hoist.

Masonry construction

Only essential workers should be near this type of work. Set up a limited access zone around the operation. In addition:

• have concrete structures checked by qualified people before loads are placed on them
• shore or brace structures adequately until they are permanently supported
• secure unrolled wire mesh so that it cannot recoil
• never load a lifting device beyond its capacity
• use automatic holding devices for backup support when using lifts

A study aid, not published or endorsed by IOSH or OSHA. Laws and limits differ between countries.