BINDING HEAVY EQUIPMENT
You may think that as a truck driver, you are not at risk until you climb in your rig and hit the road. WRONG!! Most injuries to truck drivers occur before the truck leaves the yard or after it reaches its destination or during intermediate stops. Slipping and falling getting into or out of the cab. Falling off of the trailer during loading or tarping operations or blowing out a knee jumping off the rig are the most common types of injuries. Additionally, lower back strains are generally associated with moving the tarps into position or the result of straining to get the bindings tight. The account of an injury associated with binding a load and demonstrates another type of injury which can be extremely painful and expensive.
This particular incident happened to a 24-year-old driver who had four years' work experience and had never experienced an accident. The driver was binding a piece of heavy equipment to a low-boy trailer using a heavy cantilever-type binder. The weather was cold and it had been snowing most of the day so the surfaces of the trailer were covered with snow, ice and mud. The driver was wearing gloves, but they were wet and slippery due to the weather conditions. He was closing the last binder to complete securing the load. Due to the position of the binder, he could not use a cheater pipe to close the binder. He almost had the binder in the fully closed position when his wet glove slipped off of the binder handle. The handle flew back at full force striking him in the face.
The driver sustained deep cuts to his lips and jaw. Five teeth were knocked out, along with a piece of the upper jaw bone. The blow was so severe that it flexed the roof of his mouth sharply, causing a break. Surgery was required to accomplish temporary repairs. Additional corrective surgery will be required over the next six to eight months to repair the upper jaw and set replacement teeth.
Could this accident happen to you? Do you expose yourself to the extreme force which could be released if your hand slipped? What can you do to avoid this exposure?
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This type of injury doesn't have to happen. Be aware of the force this type of binder builds up and protect yourself from it. The following guidelines should help.
- All personnel handling load binders should make certain they position the binders to allow a cheater pipe to be used. Make sure the cheater is not so long that you can't remove it once the binder is closed.
- Get help when someone is available, but don't grab "one bite too many" on the chain. If you can't get enough slack to close the binder 1/3 of the way without meeting force, slack off one link.
- Dry gloves are essential to avoid slipping. (They are also warmer and allow you to maintain more feeling in your fingers in cold weather)
- Above all, drivers must position themselves so they are clear of any possible "snap backs". The best way to see stars is to look at the night sky rather than being hit in the face with a binder handle. Because it's never happened doesn't mean it can't.
Work Hard - ActSafe®
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