“It was our contention that (forklift driver) was operating blind...”

This is an update on a post from 2 years ago involving a moveable equipment fatality. The original post dealt with a forklift driver who was prosecuted after a worker was killed by the forklift he was driving.  The original post can be found here. Here is the recent story:

A man in the Midwest United States was sentenced during the week of January 14, 2018 to 30 months in prison for the forklift death of another contract worker two years ago at an automotive facility in.

The forklift driver was charged with one count of reckless homicide for the death of a coworker who died in January 2016 after being struck by a forklift driven by the defendant.

“We recommended the full sentence,” of 36 months for the third-degree felony, said local County Prosecutor. “We understand the idea of an accident, but this rose to the level of criminal recklessness.”

The forklift driver, the local county prosecutor said, had been seen running as many as six stop signs inside the plant an hour before the crash with the deceased. The forklift driver was carrying a trash hopper on the front of the lift, and ignored his training to operate in reverse if the view is obstructed.

“It was our contention that (forklift driver) was operating blind,” said local county prosecutor. “This was a totally preventable thing.”

The deceased worker was crossing a causeway between two buildings at the facility, about five minutes into his shift when he was struck and dragged 20 feet. Up to 100 people were interviewed, including one eyewitness.

The deceased worker, who has a wife and two children, was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died from a crushed skull shortly after the incident.

The forklift driver worked for a contractor, which had a contract to remove waste from the facility. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cleared the contractor and automotive company of any safety violations which might have contributed to the death.

We acknowledge that the deceased worker’s family’s pain does not go away. They are constantly reminded of their loss in so many ways. We pray that this court case allows the family to know that the individual who was responsible for their husband, father, brother, friend, etc. has been held accountable. Hopefully this incident can be used to reinforce the importance of following your training, never skips steps, never make assumptions, and no regrets. No regrets deals with if you cause the injury or death of a coworker. This forklift driver will hopefully regret his poor decisions that resulted in the death of a coworker.

No regrets also means that if you see a coworker(s) acting unsafely you must intervene immediately. As one aluminium company CEO commonly states “Safety is Now, not five or ten minutes later. Safety is Now”. We pray for the workers who saw this forklift driver behaving unsafe and did not intervene. Some may have a guilt that will be a burden for the rest of the lives.

In 2017 I was in the Middle East at an aluminium company touring the facility. As we are walking around the plant I commented on the speed of a tractor trailer that passed by. My host chased after that vehicle and upon stopping the driver took his driver’s license away from him. Instructing the driver that he would receive it back at security at the front gate. Remember no regrets.

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