Stewart-Amos Steel, Inc.

Incident Narrative

Three employees were working in the yard to rig a single steel beam from a stack of steel in order to lift the beam and move it with a mobile crane. The crane operator walked over to the stacked steel to hand a dog (hook on the end of a chain for lifting steel) to Employee 1, who was located on the other side of the stacked steel. The crane operator could not reach Employee 1 through the stacked steel, so Employee 2 walked between the stacks to take the dog from the crane operator and pass it to Employee 1. When the crane operator leaned over the stack to pass the dog to Employee 2, the steel began to fall, pushing other pieces of steel towards Employee 2 and pinning the employee's legs between pieces of steel. Employee 2 suffered crushing injuries to the right leg that required hospitalization and surgery.