Michael L. Davis
The soldier had just been licensed for all types of forklifts in the unit. While helping move supplies, the soldier forgot or (as stated in the accident report) was not aware the forklift turned from the rear and not the front. As the operator turned the forklift, the ground guide’s foot was run over and broken. After this accident, the unit decided on mandatory safety briefings for all forklift operators, on more training for operators of the different forklifts, and on supervision by unit leaders during high-risk operations. The unit’s leadership decided these three measures would reduce the accident risks with forklifts.
This unit is on the path to success for forklift accident prevention. Most accidents are preventable, with a little effort in training and enforcement of the standards. These are common Army misconceptions: forklift operation is easy, can be learned quickly, and does not require practice. These misconceptions lead to forklift accidents.
The Quartermaster Branch Safety Office has been collecting accident information for the past 11 fiscal years (FY85-95) on forklift accidents. Data include all recordable military and Army civilian employee reports available from the US Army Safety Center, Fort Rucker, AL. Also, hundreds of officers and enlisted personnel were interviewed. The results were informative and surprising.
Accidents for FY85-95 totaled 1,005, with 17 fatalities and 16 permanent total/partial disabilities, more than $5.6 million in personal injury costs and more than $2.8 million in damages to equipment and other property. Equipment damage costs are recorded only when damage exceeds $2,000. Injury costs are recorded if the individual loses 24 hours of time because of the accident. (Note: In FY87 most Army civilian employee accidents began to be reported to the Department of Labor instead of the US Army Safety Center. This resulted in a major decline of Army civilian employee accident information. Also, the reportable dollar value of an accident was raised, again reducing the number of accidents reportable to the US Army Safety Center.)
What became clear from the forklift safety study was the magnitude of the lack of training of Army military and civilian operators and a lack of enforcement of standards by unit supervisors. Operator accidents account for 68 percent of all types of forklift accidents. A review of the 1,005 forklift accidents identified the following as the most common types:
- Operator/Material Handling - an accident involving the forklift and personnel during the loading, unloading or hauling of material. Equipment damage and personal injury most likely to occur.
- Operator/Misjudged Clearance - accident occurring when the forklift operator misjudges distance or clearance requirements and hits another object. Equipment damage most likely to occur.
- Operator/Load Dropped - accident occurring when the load of a forklift falls during loading, unloading or hauling. Equipment damage and personal injury most likely to occur.
- Maintenance - repair or adjustment of equipment, preventive maintenance checks and services, assembly, installing, replacing or cleaning involving a forklift. Individual injury most likely to occur.
- Exit/Enter Vehicle - simple physical action of entering or exiting the forklift. Usually caused by haste and not following the three-point contact rule.
- Operator/Human Locomotion - accident involving an operating forklift hitting an individual not directly working with the forklift. Individual injury most likely to occur.
- Towing/Hauling - movement of a vehicle by another vehicle with either vehicle being a forklift. Individual injury most likely to occur.
- Operator/Too Fast For Road Conditions - accident occurring when the operator is driving too fast for surface conditions. Equipment damage and personal injury most likely to occur.
- Operator/Improper Physical Action - physical action take by the driver that causes injury to the driver.
- Operator/Equipment Failure - failure of equipment directly causing an accident. Equipment damage mostly likely to occur.
Forklift accident prevention is a significant challenge to Army leadership in the field. Operator/material handling errors are the most hazardous types of forklift accidents. Accident reports documented operators who had improper licensing or who failed to follow procedures and safety standards, lacked ground guides, worked without supervision for difficult jobs, and lacked training for the specific forklift in use. Here is a list of procedures that unit leaders must enforce:
- Permit only licensed operators on forklifts.
- Require ground guides and require ground guides to use signals because noise levels around forklifts are high and voice communications often cannot be heard.
- Do not allow forklifts to travel with forks elevated more than four inches above the ground. Require forks to rest on the ground when the forklift is parked.
- Do not allow forklift operators to bump or push stacks to straighten or move the stacks.
- Make sure operators secure and anchor bridge plates and ramps to prevent slipping.
- Require operators to stop the engine and set the brake before getting off the forklift.
- Make sure personnel in the area stand only where they cannot be struck by the load or the forklift. Also, make sure personnel in the area are away from the mast while the forklift is operating.
- Do not allow operators to use the forklift to elevate personnel unless authorized by the supervisor. Require operators to use a safety pallet when lifting is authorized. Personnel being lifted will face away from the mast and remain clear of the hoisting mechanism.
- Do not allow personnel to counterbalance a load on the forklift by riding the load.
- Require the correct size of forklift for the load capacity.
- Require operators to stop the engine and set the brake if problems develop during moving, loading or unloading.
- Require the operators to inspect the load to be moved. Do not allow operators to move unstable unsecured loads.
- Do not allow ground personnel to manhandle heavy items onto the forks, and require ground personnel to ask for help with loading problems.
Leaders must continually remind ground personnel that they will lose every time in an "argument" with a forklift. The following examples illustrate this important point:
A soldier and a civilian were attempting to move a 300-pound pallet of rubber floor mats to a new location. The civilian was the forklift operator. The operator attempted to pick up the pallet, but it tipped forward each time. The soldier, who was acting as the ground guide, decided to physically push the pallet forward while the forklift picked it up. The pallet fell forward on top of the soldier, resting on his leg and foot. The pallet was removed by seven personnel after responding to the soldier’s screams.
After storing a generator, the ground guide was closing the CONEX doors. The soldier turned his back to the forklift while standing between the forklift and the CONEX container. The forklift operator seeing that the ground guide’s difficulty, set the handbrake and began dismounting the vehicle to assist. While dismounting, the operator slipped and depressed the accelerator. The forklift lurched forward and pinned the ground guide to the CONEX. The operator had difficulty placing the forklift into reverse gear because the accelerator stuck. A maintenance check later determined that the accelerator was not operating properly.
After operator/material handling errors, the second leading cause of personal injury and equipment damage is misjudgment of clearance requirements. If an operator has doubts about clearance, the operator should stop the forklift and check.
A third cause of forklift accidents is dropping loads. To overcome this danger area, operators must not use improperly loaded forklifts or forklifts in unsafe mechanical condition, inspect all loads and not overload, not move an unstable load, avoid moving loose materials, and not move an unsafe load from an unblocked truck or trailer. Operators must ask their supervisors if unsure about procedure. Also, to prevent this type of accident, personnel near the forklift must not stand under the load being hoisted, lowered or carried.
Maintenance is the fourth major cause of injuries. Personnel error, such as the following, causes most maintenance accidents:
A soldier was tasked to conduct maintenance washing and flushing of a forklift’s radiator. The soldier left the forklift running to ensure fluid was running through the cooling system. While tightening the drain plug, the soldier’s hand slipped and hit the fan blade. His hand and fingers were cut, damaging tendons and nerves. The soldier had major hand surgery to reattach the tendons and repair damage.
A soldier was removing batteries from several forklifts. During the operation, he rubbed his eyes without removing his gloves. Flushing his eyes did not help. The soldier had to go to the hospital for treatment for chemical burns to his eyes.
Speed too fast for the road conditions is a major problem for the military and one of the leading causes of deaths in forklift accidents. Operators need to always use their seat belts, reduce speed when driving down or up grades, and remember at all times not to cut corners when operating forklift. The driver is responsible for the safe operation of the equipment. The following are examples of driver errors with excessive speed:
A driver was operating a 4,000-pound forklift on a loading dock. The driver made a 90-degree turn while backing up at too great a speed from the ramp to the loading dock. He was unable to properly straighten the steering wheel of the forklift on the ramp and lost control. The forklift started to go off the ramp. The driver attempted to jump off the forklift. His foot was caught in the battery compartment. He was pinned down and crushed to death by the overhead protective safety guard of the forklift.
A forklift driver was traveling at a high rate of speed. The driver was inexperienced and ignored the speed. He tried to negotiate a dip in the road but lost control because of excessive speed. The forklift overturned, pinning the operator’s leg under the forklift. The forklift and the pinned driver then slid approximately 20 feet before stopping. The forklift had only $1,000 dollars worth of damage, but medical costs exceeded $32,000 for the driver.
Leaders and safety go hand in hand. Forklifts are designed to perform specific functions under specified conditions with trained personnel. When leaders do not enforce standards, human errors enter the forklift operations and potential safety hazards occur. These problems are compounded when inexperienced, unsupervised, untrained or partly trained personnel become operators for forklifts. Only thorough training, practice on the equipment, following correct procedures and standards, and leader involvement will prevent accidents, minimize damage and improve forklift safety.
Protecting the force means taking care of both personnel and equipment. The loss of either reduces the Army’s ability to perform mission requirements.
Michael L. Davis, Quartermaster Branch Safety Office, Office of the Quartermaster General, Fort Lee, Virginia.