The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has published a report on a truck driver fatality at Trinity Materials’ Rye Dredge & Plant in Cleveland, Texas, on 12 April. Investigators believe 59-year-old Manuel G. Rodriguez fell from his truck while trying to reach the radio frequency identification card reader (RFID) and was run over by the vehicle’s rear wheels.
Rodriquez arrived at the plant at 8.30 and pulled up to the Apex Express RFID to pick up sand. Investigators think he unbuckled his seat belt, opened the driver's side door while pressing the clutch with his right foot, leaned out with the vehicle in gear when his foot slipped, causing the truck to move forward. The forward motion threw the Rodriguez from the truck where he was run over.
Angela Worell, scale house attendant, heard a loud noise, looked through the window and saw a truck on the side of the road. She went to the scale house door and saw someone under the belly dump portion of the truck and called for help on a radio. Bryan Payne, customer truck driver, exited his truck and put Rodriquez's vehicle in the park position. David Parks, loader operator, began cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but Rodriquez did not respond. Robert Jones, dredge operator, arrived to relieve Parks with chest compressions while Parks prepared the emergency defibrillator.
At 8:58, Liberty County Emergency Medical Services and the sheriff’s department arrived at the scene and county responders attended the victim. Cody Parrish, Liberty County justice of the peace, pronounced Rodriguez dead at the scene. The cause of death was later determined to be “blunt force injuries.”
MSHA’s accident investigation team conducted a physical examination of the accident and interviewed eighteen mine employees and customers truck drivers and reviewed documents and work procedures relevant to the accident. The investigation was carried out with the assistance of mine management, miners, customer truck drivers and owners of the truck involved in the accident.
Investigators conducted a root cause analysis which revealed the accident occurred because the victim did not properly secure the truck by setting the park brake and taking the vehicle out of gear before opening the door and leaning out of the cab.
The mine operator has now discontinued the use of the RFID system and will use handheld and CB radios for communications with customer truck drivers. Site training now includes instructions to visitors which advises them to set park brakes and place equipment in the park position before leaving the cab.
