• Install guardrails, covers, or nets to block openings
• Wear fall arrest system when required
• Know location in case of emergency

Toolbox Talk Guide

www.ohsu.edu/croet/face

Home Construction Worker Falls Down Elevator Shaft

INSTRUCTIONS: Make the "Fatal Hazard" Warning Sign visible to your crew before reading the following story.

Our safety talk today is about a 41-year-old construction worker from another company who fell 23 feet down an elevator shaft and died during the construction of a new home. Some workers had removed the guardrails around the elevator shaft so they could pass joists through it. The victim later fell down the elevator shaft where he was found bleeding from his head. One of the workers called 911, but didn’t know the address, which delayed emergency response time and the victim died at the site.

Here are some ways we can prevent something like this from happening where we work.

• Install guardrails, covers, or safety nets to block openings or edges that are over 6 feet above the ground, like unfinished stairwells.
• Wear a fall arrest system if working near a fall hazard 6 feet off the ground.
• Know your location so you can give an address or directions to emergency responders if needed.

ASK: “Does anyone have more ideas or comments to share?” Pause for discussion. Then see if there are ways to take action.

END WITH ACTION PLAN (ideas for what to ask or say).

• “Are there any unguarded floor openings at our site that we might have missed in safety inspections that could be corrected today?”
• “Are there other fall hazards we could fix or make less dangerous?”
• “What do you all do if you need to access a floor opening like this?”
• Discuss a similar condition at your current site, or your emergency medical plan.
• Express your commitment to providing fall protection training and gear.
• Commit to follow-up at the next safety talk.