“The memory of the forklift operator... will serve as a catalyst for change...”
On the morning of Friday February 16, 2024, a 68 year old forklift operator was killed at a Fort Worth, TX distribution center. The Fort Worth Fire Department has said it appears she was crushed between a forklift and a pallet rack.
The accident is under investigation, but this describes forklift underride. This occurs when a standup forklift reverses unimpeded into a horizontal rack beam, crushing the operator between the beam and the front of the operator compartment.
Standup Forklift Underride
Standup Forklift with Rear Guarding
The deceased was a mother of four and a grandmother of 13. According to bnnbreaking.com, “[t]he memory of the forklift operator... will serve as a catalyst for change...” Sadly, and horribly, that is highly unlikely.
Previous underride fatalities have not spurred change. A fatality occurred in West Point, GA, in April 2023 – 10 months ago. A Sheriff’s Office spokesperson downplayed that fatality as “... just ... an industrial accident...”. A news headline called it a “freak accident”.
As long as underride is seen as an Act of God, random chance and unavoidable, operators will continue to suffer horrific life-altering crush injuries and death.
Forklift underride is well documented. It has been a widely known safety hazard for decades. It’s time to stop underride – for good. And it can be stopped.
Equipping standup forklifts with rear corner posts is the most effective way to stop rack cross beams from entering the operator compartment. PERIOD!
Better Standard Operating Procedures, more training and warning devices will not protect the operator as well as physical barriers against underride (Source: Ziernicki and Ngyuen).
Let’s let the memory of every standup forklift operator serve as a catalyst for change. Talk to your employees, the workplace safety committee and representatives, supervisors, forklift maintenance techs, etc. about retrofitting your forklifts with rear corner posts. Let’s make forklift underride history.
At the end of every workday, send your employees home, alive and well.
Sources:
https://bnnbreaking.com/breaking-news/accidents/fatal-forklift-accident-at-walmart-distribution-center-a-call-for-enhanced-workplace-safety
https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/fort-worth/article285562952.html
Current Assessment of Standup Forklifts’ Underride Accidents, Ziernicki and Ngyuen, Journal of the National Academy of Forensics Engineers, December 2022.
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