MEC&F Expert Engineers : 06/16/18

Saturday, June 16, 2018

Construction worker died after he was burried alive by dirt when the shorless trench wall collapsed at a construction site in front of Base Camp One at Granby Ranch in Colorado





Man dies after getting buried at Granby construction site
Bryce Martin / Sky-Hi NewsJune 15, 2018
 
Bryce Martin

Emergency crews lift the man to a nearby ambulance.


A man who was buried Thursday morning at a construction site at Granby Ranch has died, according to Granby police.

The man, whose name has not yet been released, was working inside a trench on a condominium project in front of Base Camp One at Granby Ranch when the trench collapsed. Another worker had stepped away for a few minutes and came back to find the man buried and called 911. Dirt and other earth material had covered him, according to Granby police. It's not yet known how much dirt was on top of him.

Emergency crews began digging the man out at around 10 a.m. and recovered him at 10:17 a.m. The man was unresponsive as crews immediately began to administer CPR. He was then switched to a Lucas CPR device that delivers automatic compression. He was transported to Middle Park Medical Center-Granby where he was pronounced dead.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, commonly known as OSHA, has been notified, according to Granby police. They will conduct a parallel investigation into the incident.

Grand County EMS, Grand County Sheriff's Office, Grand Fire and other first responders responded to the scene.

the probable cause(s) of the Haynes Ambulance medical helicopter crash was the pilot's decision to perform visual flight rules flight into night instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in loss of control due to spatial disorientation. Killed were pilot Chad Hammond, flight nurse Stacey Cernadas, flight medic Jason Snipes and patient Zach Strickland.








 
A photo of the Haynes Ambulance helicopter that crashed in 2016. (Source: File from Haynes Ambulance)

 
Chad Hammond, Jason Snipes, Stacey Cernadas and Zack Strickland (Photos source: Facebook) MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) -




Pilot error likely caused fatal medical helicopter crash 


Friday, June 15 2018

By WSFA 12 News Staff


The National Transportation Safety Board, or NTSB, has released its final report on the 2016 south Alabama crash that killed four aboard a Haynes Ambulance medical helicopter.

Killed in the Haynes Ambulance medical helicopter crash on March 26, 2016, were pilot Chad Hammond, flight nurse Stacey Cernadas, flight medic Jason Snipes and patient Zach Strickland.

According to the official findings of the investigation, the pilot's actions were determined to be the probable cause of the crash with the report stating:


"The pilot's decision to perform visual flight rules flight into night instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in loss of control due to spatial disorientation. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's self-induced pressure to complete the mission despite the weather conditions and the operator's inadequate oversight of the flight by its operational control center."

The NTSB report detailed the events of that night that led up to the fatal crash near Enterprise in Coffee County.

The flight crew of Life Flight 2 was dispatched from its base at Troy Regional Medical Center at 11:26 p.m. en route to the site of a car crash to pick up a patient for transport.

The helicopter landed at the scene at 11:53 p.m. The weather at the car crash scene included fog, mist, and light precipitation. A nearby weather station indicated there was a 300-foot ceiling and three miles of visibility.

At 12:16 a.m., once the patient was on board, the helicopter climbed from the crash scene, turned north, and climbed to an altitude of 1,100 feet. The chopper crashed to the ground about a half-mile away in a flight that lasted less than a minute.

When the pilot did not check in with the communications center as he was required to do, a search was started for the missing helicopter. The wreckage was found the next morning on County Road 615 near County Road 603 in the Goodman Community.


============================

National Transportation Safety Board
Aviation Accident Final Report



Location:
Enterprise, AL
Accident Number:
ERA16FA140
Date & Time:
03/26/2016, 0018 CDT
Registration:
N911GF
Aircraft:
EUROCOPTER AS 350 B2
Aircraft Damage:
Substantial
Defining Event:
VFR encounter with IMC
Injuries:
4 Fatal
Flight Conducted Under:
Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter - Non-scheduled - Air Medical (Medical Emergency)

Analysis


After picking up a patient at a motor vehicle accident (MVA) site, the airline transport pilot of the helicopter air ambulance flight, which was operating under visual flight rules (VFR), departed in dark night instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) to transport the patient to a hospital; a flight nurse and paramedic were also on board. Witness statements, video, and photographs indicated that reduced visibility in fog and mist as well as very-light-to-light precipitation existed at the MVA site, and the nearest weather station, 4 miles away, was reporting a 300-ft ceiling and 3 miles visibility. Radar data indicated that, after takeoff, the helicopter entered a left turn and climbed to 1,000 ft above mean sea level (msl). The rate of turn then began to increase, and, after reaching a peak altitude of 1,100 ft msl, the helicopter began a rapid descent that continued to ground impact. According to the radar data, the flight lasted about 1 minute. A search was initiated when the pilot did not check in with the communications center as required, and the wreckage was located the next morning about 1/2 mile from the departure location. Examination of the accident site and wreckage revealed that the helicopter struck trees and terrain and was highly fragmented. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal evidence of any preimpact malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation of the helicopter.
Although the helicopter was not certificated for flight in IMC, it had sufficient instrumentation to operate in the event of an inadvertent encounter with IMC and was equipped with a helicopter terrain avoidance warning system, a night vision imaging system which included night vision goggles (NVGs), and an autopilot. The pilot had about 265 hours experience operating in IMC and had been trained in inadvertent IMC loss of control recovery, but he was not instrument current. Further, he had not been trained or qualified by the operator to fly in IMC. He was likely using NVGs during the flight as one of the first responders who helped load the patient into the helicopter saw the pilot wearing them. Based on the weather conditions, the flight path of the helicopter, and the lack of preimpact failures or anomalies, it is likely that the pilot experienced spatial disorientation after entering IMC and subsequently lost control of the helicopter.
To accomplish operational control of its flights, the operator used an operational control center (OCC) that was staffed 24 hours a day by operational control coordinators. According to the operator, the pilot had the final authority and responsibility for decisions relating to safety of flight, and the operational control coordinators were responsible for confirming whether a flight or series of flights could be initiated, conducted, or terminated safely, in accordance with the authorizations, limitations, and procedures in their operations manual, and the applicable regulations. In the case of the accident flight, the operator's required VFR weather minimums were a 1,000-ft ceiling with a flight visibility of 3 miles.
The operational control coordinators' role was accomplished by inputting flight data into software programs that would perform automated database queries for pilot currency and aircraft maintenance information and would provide weather information based upon route of flight. Both OCC personnel and pilots had the authority to terminate a flight at any time if required conditions were not met. There were two personnel on duty before and during the time of the accident at the operator's OCC, a trainee operational control coordinator and a senior operational control coordinator. About 1 hour before the helicopter accident, the OCC received notification of the request for the helicopter to respond to the MVA, and the coordinators used a software program called "OCC Helper" to query weather information. Although the coordinates for the location of the MVA provided to the OCC were correct, the format of the coordinates was not the correct format for OCC Helper. Therefore, the OCC Helper software only recognized the MVA site as being near the helicopter's base, which was reporting visual meteorological conditions, and did not show the IMC being reported at weather stations closer to the MVA site. The trainee reported that latitude and longitude format was a common problem with OCC Helper and, at times, required OCC personnel to reformat the latitude and longitude coordinates to get the coordinates to work in OCC Helper. On the night of the accident, the incorrectly formatted latitude and longitude for the MVA site were not corrected in OCC Helper until after the helicopter had departed its base en route to the MVA site. Given the IMC weather conditions being reported, which were below the required VFR weather minimums for the flight, the OCC coordinators should have provided the pilot with additional weather information after they had correctly input the coordinates of the MVA site into the OCC Helper software; however, they did not do so. The lack of monitoring of the flight by the OCC through direct human interaction due to overreliance on mission support software and other automated aids, and the incorrectly interpreted latitude and longitude information by both the software and the operational control coordinators resulted in a loss of operational control. Although the software formatting issues were known, there was no standard operating procedure to mitigate the problem.
The pilot had access to internet-based weather information at the helicopter's base, but it is unknown what weather information the pilot reviewed before beginning the flight to the MVA. However, text messages between the pilot and a friend and between the flight nurse on the accident flight and the same friend indicated that the pilot was aware of the possibility of encountering IMC before he departed the base for the MVA site. Further, after landing at the MVA, the pilot would have been aware that the weather conditions at the site were below the company's VFR weather minimums. Given the weather conditions at the MVA site, the pilot should have canceled the flight or, at a minimum, contacted the OCC to obtain updated weather information and guidance. However, the pilot's fixation on completing the mission probably motivated him to depart on the accident flight in IMC, even though significantly less risky alternatives existed, such as canceling the flight and transporting the patient by ground ambulance.

Probable Cause and Findings

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
 
The pilot's decision to perform visual flight rules flight into night instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in loss of control due to spatial disorientation. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's self-induced pressure to complete the mission despite the weather conditions and the operator's inadequate oversight of the flight by its operational control center.

Coroner clears Otis company following lift shaft death of employee Brendan Scheib in Wellington


Coroner clears Otis company following lift shaft death of employee Brendan Scheib





Brendon Scheib, who was crushed to death by a lift.


A coroner has cleared an elevator company of any fault after one of its employees was killed in a Wellington lift shaft accident.

Experienced lift technician Brendon Scheib, 54, died on January 14, 2016 while he was working on a lift shaft inside the Harcourts Building on Grey St in Wellington.

Coroner Tim Scott released the findings of his inquest into Scheib's death on Thursday, saying that his employer, Otis, "takes and has taken the issue of worker safety very seriously".

ROBERT KITCHIN/STUFF


Deb Scheib's husband, Brendon Scheib, was killed in a lift shaft accident. (File photo)


"It has produced what appears to me – as a lay person looking at only one aspect of lift safety – a very comprehensive manual or handbook for the benefit of its employees and sub-contractors."

Scott ruled that Scheib died as a result of neck and chest injuries, and crush asphyxia.

A WorkSafe investigation concluded it was likely Scheib either thought he had engaged the top pit switch in the lift shaft when he had not, or had knocked it accidentally, causing the lift to restart.

The report found Scheib, who had almost three decades of industry experience, was unlikely to have been misled by the status of the switches, although it was possible.

It also found adequate systems were put in place by both Otis and the building owners to manage the risks that came with working in lifts. No action was taken against the elevator company.

Last year, Scheib's widow Deb Scheib planned, at one stage, to take a private prosecution against Otis because she had concerns over the conditions her husband was working in when he died.

These included the position and design of the pit switch used to stop lifts while working in the lift shaft, the fact technicians worked alone and not in pairs, and fears the lifts were not in a condition to be used.

Otis general manager Dwaine Scott said the company respected the family's right to privacy and he had no further comment.

The cause of a fast-moving fire that left Peter Dyer, 65, dead and the two Mosher brothers injured in Livermore Falls, ME is still undetermined due to the extensive damage to the building


















LIVERMORE FALLS, ME — 


Investigators scoured the charred remains Wednesday of a three-story house on Main Street, trying to determine the cause of a fast-moving fire Tuesday night that left one man dead and two brothers injured.

Investigators Isaiah Peppard and Kenneth MacMaster of the State Fire Marshal’s Office checked the interior of the wood-framed house at 100 Main St. They were joined by Sgt. Joel Davis, a state investigator, later in the day.

Attempts to reach an investigator Wednesday night were unsuccessful.

About 50 firefighters from seven towns responded to the call at about 7 p.m., Livermore Falls Deputy Chief Scott Shink said Wednesday at the scene.

The house was rented by Robert and Amy Mosher, who lived there with their sons Collin, 13, and Brayden 11, and family friend Tori Lebel, according to Amy Mosher.

Firefighters entered the house through the back and were able to search the first floor, but could not get into the front room, where the body of Peter Dyer, 65, Amy Mosher’s uncle, was eventually found.




Firefighters went in through the back of the house, which was more than 200 years old, and searched the first floor but could not get into the front room, Shink said. They searched the second floor, but the family had already gotten out.

Firefighters were able to save a house about 8 feet away by dousing it with water, Shink said. The heat melted the vinyl siding on the house.



===================================



LIVERMORE FALLS, ME (WGME) -- The State Fire Marshal’s Office has identified the man that was killed in a fire in Livermore Falls on Tuesday.

The victim was identified as 66-year-old Peter Dyer.

Dyer rented the Main Street home and lived there with other relatives.

Officials say his body was found in the first floor living room.

Fire investigators say the fire started in the living room and spread quickly to the rest of the house.

Two young brothers had to jump from the second story to escape the flames.

Fire investigators say the cause of the fire cannot be undermined because of the extensive damage to the building.



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LIVERMORE FALLS, ME (WGME) -- 


A man is dead and two children were injured after a fire destroyed a home in Livermore Falls.

The fast-moving flames left two children trapped.

Escaping from a third floor window and then jumping from the second floor, two children escaped the burning building, jumping into the arms of a police officer who was in the right place at the right time.

"I don't think you can train for that, instinct needs to kick in with that," Livermore Falls Police Chief Ernest Steward said.

There was no time to think, with a fire moving that fast, but for Sgt. Vernon Stevens, with the Livermore Falls Police, he knew what to do right away.

"Went to the residence to see what was going on, and when he got there he saw the two boys in the window," Steward said.

A 10-year-old and 14-year-old were trapped on the third floor.

Sgt. Stevens encouraged them to climb out the window and jump into his arms.

"The sergeant caught him and helped him, they both went to the ground,” Stewad said. “And then the second boy jumped, landed on a second roof and then bounced off of that onto the ground."

Both boys escaped with only minor injuries.

It was a heroic action by a public servant, who feels he was just doing his duty.

"He didn't want to be on-camera, he wanted the praise to be for the boys for jumping out of a three-story window like that, they were the brave ones, not him," Steward said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation and the two children who were hurt are said to still be in the hospital.



PADEP Issues a Code Orange Air Quality Action Day Forecast for Southwest, Southcentral and Lehigh Valley Counties for June 16-18, 2018

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
06/15/2018
CONTACT:
Neil Shader, DEP
717-787-1323

 
PADEP Issues a Code Orange Air Quality Action Day Forecast for Southwest, Southcentral and Lehigh Valley Counties for June 16-18, 2018



Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and its regional air quality partnerships have forecast a Code Orange Air Quality Action Day for ozone on June 16, 2018 for the Pittsburgh region (encompassing Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Indiana, Mercer, Washington, and Westmoreland counties). A Code Orange Air Quality Action Day for ozone is also forecast on June 17 and 18 for the Pittsburgh region, southcentral counties (Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and York counties) and the Lehigh Valley (Berks, Lehigh, and Northampton counties).

A strong ridge of high pressure, a mostly sunny sky, temperatures in the lower to middle 90s Fahrenheit, and west to southwesterly transport will be highly favorable for ozone formation, starting across western Pennsylvania Saturday, and in all locations Sunday into the day Monday. This will result in code ORANGE conditions to a widespread area of Pennsylvania Sunday into Monday. An approaching cold front will bring a better chance for afternoon and evening thunderstorms Tuesday, reducing the risk for elevated ozone.

On air quality action days, young children, the elderly and those with respiratory problems, such as asthma, emphysema and bronchitis, are especially vulnerable to the effects of air pollution and should limit outdoor activities.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s standardized air quality index uses colors to report daily air quality. Green signifies good; yellow means moderate; orange represents unhealthy pollution levels for sensitive people; and red warns of unhealthy pollution levels for all.

To help keep the air healthy, residents and business are encouraged to voluntarily restrict certain pollution-producing activities by:
•    Refueling cars and trucks after dusk
•    Setting air conditioner thermostats to a higher temperature
•    Carpooling or using public transportation; and
•    Combining errands to reduce trips.

These forecasts are provided in conjunction with the Southwestern PA Air Quality Partnership, Inc, the Susquehanna Valley Air Quality Partnership and the Lehigh Valley-Berks Air Quality Partnership.

For more information, visit www.dep.pa.gov.