Summary of Workplace Fatalities, 2012
Use the information in this table to build hazard awareness and prevent risk for similar occurrences in your workplace.
This table shares preliminary details about many of the fatalities reported to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health at the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (DOSH). When further details are available, entries may be updated in the annual summary.
This is not a complete list and is not meant for data or research purposes. Fatalities associated with natural causes or suicides are not listed.
| Workplace Fatalities in Washington State 2012 | ||
| Event Date | Description of the Event | Industry |
| 12/13/2012 | A worker was priming an airplane and stepped off the Stacker, falling 15 feet to the cement floor. The worker was wearing a harness but it was not clipped to the lanyard. | Aircraft conversions |
| 12/11/2012 | A worker was removing a lift mast tube from a paint cart without the use of a lift table. When the last securing bolt was removed, the tube fell and crushed the workers head between the mast tube and paint cart, killing the worker. | Aircraft engine cradles manufacturing |
| 11/30/2012 | Two workers fell approximately 35 feet from a roof. The owner died at the scene and the other worker was hospitalized. | Asphalt Roof Shingle Installation |
| 11/14/2012 | A worker was sitting at a desk when a motor vehicle crashed through a building wall and pinned worker under the car, killing the worker. | Insurance Agencies and Brokerages |
| 11/4/2012 | A motor vehicle accident occurred when an impaired driver struck three vehicles on the freeway, including a worker's tank truck, and the truck struck a sound wall, eventually bursting into flames and killing the worker. | General Freight Trucking, Long-Distance, Truckload |
| 11/2/2012 | A worker slipped over a child's blanket or pillow and fell to the floor, hitting the chin and head. The worker did not seek medical treatment after the incident and died three weeks later. | Religion Organizations |
| 10/19/2012 | A worker suffered serious spinal injuries and was permanently disabled when a wall opening was not guarded and the worker fell. The worker passed away from complications related to that earlier injury. | Framing Contractor |
| 10/15/2012 | A worker was electrocuted and died while attempting to cut a tree limb and remove it from a 115 kV power line. | Administration of Conservation Programs |
| 10/7/2012 | A worker was on the deck of a bridge rigging up tarps when they slipped and fell into a river. The body has not been found. | Painting and Wall Covering Contractors |
| 10/3/2012 | A worker was electrocuted while working on a surface mining operation. | Construction sand and gravel mining |
| 10/2/2012 | An out-of-state homicide occurred when a worker was on a layover from an air flight. When the worker did not come into work the next morning police were notified and they later found the workers body near a freeway. | Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation |
| 9/24/2012 | A business owner was traveling from Oregon to Idaho when the truck they were driving went off the side of the road causing blunt force trauma and death. | Sawmills |
| 9/21/2012 | A driver of a semi truck died when they drove off the road and crashed into a tree which caused the truck to burst into flames. | Couriers and Express Delivery Services |
| 9/18/2012 | Two workers were in a Manlift installing siding panels. The Manlift crushed one of the workers between the lift and building. | Asphalt roof, shingle installation |
| 9/5/2012 | A worker was fatally electrocuted after lifting an irrigation pipe that came in contact with power lines over head. | Other Noncitrus Fruit Farming |
| 9/3/2012 | Due to heavy fog and speed a driver failed to negotiate a turn and crashed into a pole causing the vehicle to roll upside down crushing the cab. | Beach maintenance and cleaning services |
| 8/28/12 | A suspect approached a Cab then opened the driver's door and fired a number of shots which killed the Cab driver. | Cab (i.e., taxi) services |
| 8/25/2012 | A worker jumped onto a platform, the platform broke and the worker fell 21 feet to the ground striking their head. | New Single-Family Housing Construction (except For-Sale Builders) |
| 8/20/2012 | A worker was struck by a haywire and was found dead at home a few days later from injury complications. | Logging |
| 8/15/2012 | A driver veered off the road in a gravel truck and struck some trees. | General Freight Trucking |
| 7/24/12 | A diver sank and drowned while sampling geoduck. | Community recreation programs, government |
| 7/23/12 | A worker was fatally crushed between the carriage and log when unhooking a choker from the log on the landing | Cutting and transporting timber. |
| 7/7/12 | A vehicle tipped over crushing the deceased. | Deciduous Tree Fruit |
| 7/4/12 | Tractor was in gear and took off on a worker causing fatal injuries. | Cold Storage & Deciduous Tree Fruit |
| 6/21/12 | A worker was killed during a rescue attempt on Mt. Rainier | Police Protection |
| 6/15/12 | A worker servicing an HVAC unit fell through an unguarded skylight. | Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning |
| 6/12/12 | During drying operations after a rain storm, a worker in a helicopter was killed when it flipped and crashed in the orchard. | Scheduled Passenger Air Transportation |
| 5/30/12 | A worker was shot during a carjacking by a multiple homicide suspect. | Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers |
| 5/17/12 | While checking on a load a worker was caught between the mast of a forklift and the forklift's overhead protection | Port and Harbor Operations |
| 5/5/12 | Two workers were performing maintenance work on a chiller unit in a cold storage warehouse the boom operated lift they were working from failed to operate on command from the operator's platform. Another worker used a forklift and a stack of pallets to reach the operators' platform to reach the workers. One of the workers fell 35 feet to the ground when the stack of pallets tipped over. | Refrigerated Warehousing and Storage |
| 3/14/12 | A worker and student died during a flight lesson. | |
| 3/3/12 | Four fishermen were lost off Southwest Washington Coast. | |
| 2/23/12 | While conducting a routine traffic stop a worker was shot and killed. | Police Protection |
| 2/19/12 | While shooting a marketing video an avalanche occurred killing a worker. | Skiing Facilities. |
| 2/14/12 | While a worker was walking in front of a stack of hay bales they shifted and one of the bales fell on the worker. | All Other Grain Farming |
| 2/8/12 | While stacking a jersey barrier up to contain bulk fertilizer a piece of the barrier fell on a worker crushing him to death. | Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers |
| 2/4/12 | A worker died from a fall into a waste water treatment pond. | Frozen Specialty Food Manufacturing |
| 1/23/12 | While trimming limbs and fallen trees at a construction company residence a worker sustained head injuries that proved fatal. | Site Preparation Contractors |
| 1/23/12 | A worker died in a motor vehicle accident. | Taxi Service |
| 1/13/12 | A volunteer worker tripped on a curb, fell, and received a head injury which resulted in death approximately 2 weeks later. | Executive and Legislative Offices, Combined |
| 1/5/12 | A worker fell while installing a rim joist. | New Single-Family Housing Construction (except Operative Builders) |
| 1/5/12 | A worker was killed when their raincoat got caught in the driveline of a truck. | General Freight Trucking, Long-Distance, Truckload |
| 1/1/12 | A worker was shot and killed during working hours. | Police Protection |
