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2/7/2019 Page 2 of 2
The injured party was interviewed and stated that he had his arm over the fascia connection when he
removed the last bolt. He also stated that he had his feet on the base of the scissors lift. When the last
bolt was removed, he stated that the fascia sprung up and lifted him under the arm out of the scissor lift.
His next recollection was when he landed on the ground. He also stated that no other fascia sections had
sprung up in the past.

The height of the handrails on the scissors lift is 1.1m and the depth of the steel fascia is 0.765m (approx
6’ 1” from the floor of the scissors lift to top of fascia). To place his arm over the connection, it was the
investigator’s opinion that he had to be standing on the mid rail of the scissors lift to provide enough
reach over the connection. His centre of gravity would have to be outside the scissor lift and when the
fascia sprung upwards, he would then have been lifted clear of the lift; his injuries (broken ankles) would
indicate that he landed on both feet. To achieve this he would have had to been hanging from the fascia
and then dropped to the ground. If he was standing on the floor of the scissors lift the force required to
lift him clear would have left bruising to the upper body and it would be very unlikely that he would have
been able to hold on to the fascia to control his fall. It was stated that there was no bruising to his upper
body.

Recommendations:

Canopy Removal
A Canopy can either be dismantled at high level or the safer option would be to lower the structure to the
ground in one operation. At the site involved, the canopy was an irregular shape and covered most of the
forecourt. In the contractors opinion there was not enough room to accommodate the crane on the site
and complete the lift of the complete canopy structure to the ground. For future projects the preferred
option will be to use a crane to lower the canopy to the ground. This should be specifically reviewed at
the pre contract meeting. If no drawings of the canopy structure are available a structural engineer should
complete an inspection and advise if the structure is safe to be lifted as one unit.
After the incident the canopy was inspected by a structural engineer. He confirmed that after a section of
steel is removed the remaining structure can be lifted to the ground in one operation.

JSA and Clearance Certificate

The JSA was written by the main contractor for their subcontractor to address the hazards associated with
dismantling a canopy; however it was effectively generic as it did not specifically address the
unsupported corner section of the canopy. In addition while the clearance certificate was filled out it also
did not identify this hazard but referred the contractor back to the JSA and SMS.
The JSA was clear in the requirement that a harness should be worn and fixed to the handrails of the hoist
platform. The subcontractor however did not follow this requirement. The importance of ensuring that
operatives understand and have knowledge of the JSA is important

“let’s make sure that we continue to make our sites THE SAFEST by helping ourselves, our colleagues,
our customers and even our competitors by improving training, helping where necessary and addressing
any issues of concern there and then”

If you have any queries regarding the Safety Bulletin content or require further information please
contact any staff member of Xmo Strata Ltd.

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Archive\Health, Safety & Environmental Bulletin No 12 Scissor Lift Injury1.doc