What Happened / Impact?
The driver of a 20-tonne tipper truck was injured when his vehicle fell off the edge of an excavation ramp. The tipper truck fell approximately two metres and landed on the driver’s side. The man behind the wheel suffered a broken nose, cut hand, and a shoulder injury.
Why it Happened?
Inspectors visited the site after the incident and found that there were no signs on the haulage routes being used. They also identified that there was no edge protection in place to prevent vehicles going over the edge of the ramp, and that excavations adjacent to some of the vehicle routes had unsupported, vertical faces which were at risk of collapse.
Inspectors found that on the morning of the incident, the earthworks team changed their working area. This meant moving the excavator’s loading position and creating a new traffic route – but the change inadvertently left an unprotected edge on the bank above.
When the first tipper truck driver used the higher-level bank instead of the intended new route, his vehicle slipped on the ramp. The next driver followed the same path – and his vehicle veered off the edge of the bank.
Immediate Learnings
Physical barriers, such as safety banks, should be provided at the edges of excavations.
According to the inspectorate: “ … had detailed procedures in place for much of the work at the site, including temporary works schemes for excavations. However, its failure to properly plan and promptly communicate changes in vehicle routes created unsafe conditions for the drivers of tipper trucks. The consequences of this could have been even more serious than they were for the driver involved in this incident.”