Worker hit by piece of concrete

TORONTO — An Ontario construction worker suffered non-life-threatening injuries in early November when a small piece of concrete hit the worker in the back of the neck.

The concrete knocked over the worker, but he remained conscious, says Matt Blajer, a spokesperson for Ontario’s Ministry of Labour in Toronto.

The employee of Toronto-based Limen Group was injured while working at the redevelopment project for the Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care in Penetanguishene, Ontario, says Paula Suitor, director of marketing and communications for EllisDon Corporation. EllisDon is in the early stages of the design, build, finance and maintenance of the new facility, and Limen Group is a subtrade responsible for the concrete work on the site.

Suitor reports that a concrete slab was being poured when a piece of concrete coming out of the drum shot off the conveyor belt and hit the worker on the back of his neck, just below the hard hat. The worker was first taken to a hospital in Barrie, Ontario before being airlifted to a facility in Toronto for further treatment, she adds.

Although work crews shut down the location after the incident, says Suitor, the MOL did not issue a stop-work order. Blajer says one compliance order was issued related to the provision of training documents.

When working at a powered conveyor — which feature belts, live rollers, slats and buckets — information from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) in Hamilton, Ontario makes the following recommendations:

• workers position themselves so they are not hit by objects moving down the conveyor;
• ensure the conveyor system can be viewed when at the operating controls;
• ensure guards are in place for all moving parts of the drive system and conveyor;
• locate handrails around low-level conveyors and areas where conveyors pass through the floor or ceiling; and,
• position emergency stop cut-off switches near the operator and along the length of the conveyor at intervals of about 30 metres or less.

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