Fatality #26 - October 28, 2008

On Tuesday, October 28, 2008, at approximately 5:11 p.m., William Kempf, a 48 year old Production Technician 1, was fatally injured while standing on the operator's deck of an end-dump haul truck. Kempf was outside the operator's cab on the deck of the parked truck between the air receiver tank and the back of the cab, when another end-dump haul truck backed into the front of his truck. The impact pushed the cab backwards, pinning Kempf between the brake accumulator cabinet at the back of the cab and the air tank. Kempf sustained fatal crushing injuries to his pelvis and lower body. 



The accident resulted from mine management's failure to have standardized traffic rules addressing the operation of haul trucks waiting in line during the loading process. This resulted in Kempf parking his truck directly behind, too close to, and in the blind spot of the other truck while waiting to be loaded. A contributing factor included failing to make certain all persons were in the clear before traveling in reverse.