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Two Tree Trimmers Die When Struck By Errant Semi Tractor-Trailer, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Fatality Case Reports--Motor Vehicle

One spring morning in 2010, three male tree trimmers set up a work site in a highway intersection at the base of a mountain. As one tree trimmer removed equipment from the truck, two other tree trimmers, 21- and 32-years old, posted signage in the intersection. The two tree trimmers were located on the shoulder of the highway. A semi tractor-trailer was driving down the mountain toward the intersection, when its brakes failed. To avoid hitting vehicles in front of the semi, the driver steered to the left, crossed the intersection, striking both tree trimmers with the semi tractor-trailer. Both …

Workers Die From Heat Stroke, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Kentucky Haz Alerts--Other

To prevent heatstroke, employers should:

• Train supervisors and employees to recognize symptoms of heat stroke
• Give frequent breaks and provide drinking water
• Adjust work hours to accommodate work conditions such as high heat index and/or high humidity
• Monitor workers who are at risk of heat stroke

Employees should:

• Report unusual behavior
• Know how to treat co-workers for heat stroke
• Monitor your physical condition and that of your coworkers

Workers Killed After Being Electrocuted, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Kentucky Haz Alerts--Other

To prevent electrocutions, employers should:

• Provide non-conductive ladders
• Conduct a jobsite survey to identify potential hazards
• Provide electricity awareness training
• Provide onsite automated external defibrillators (AEDs)

• Use non-conductive ladders
• De-energize lines before beginning work
• Make sure all equipment is properly grounded
• Know how to use automated external defibrillators (AEDs)

Workers Killed During Tree Trimming/Removal, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Kentucky Haz Alerts--Other

To prevent tree trimming and removal fatalities, workers should:

• Perform a hazard assessment of the work area before starting work
• Appropriate personal equipment should be worn at all times while trimming or removing trees
• Determine the tree’s felling direction. Address forward lean, back lean, and/or side lean issues
• All trees and limbs should be inspected for structural weakness before work commences
• Have an escape route planned

Semi Truck Driver Falls Asleep While Driving, Crashes And Dies, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Fatality Case Reports--Motor Vehicle

A 56 year-old male long-haul semi-truck driver fell asleep while driving. It was approximately 4:15 AM and the driver was hauling a load of canned tomatoes. He was approximately 225 miles away from his destination driving in the right hand lane, on a four lane interstate traveling south, when he fell asleep. Upon falling asleep, the unit travelled to the right, across the rumble strip and the emergency lane, behind a guardrail, down an embankment and crashed into a grove of trees. A man driving a car behind the semi truck saw dust rise from the crash, stopped, called emergency …

Semi Drivers Killed After Vehicle Rollovers, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Kentucky Haz Alerts--Motor Vehicle

To prevent semi truck rollovers, employers should:

• Implement and enforce a seat belt safety program
• Establish and strengthen a company policy to reduce fatigue on the job

Employees should:

• Always wear a seat belt while in the vehicle
• Use correct lights during a fog
• Use proper precautions to reduce sloshing
• Reduce inadequate evasive actions

Municipal Solid Waste Collector Dies After Falling From Solid Waste Vehicle Hopper Area, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Fatality Case Reports--Motor Vehicle

On a spring day in 2010, a 41 year-old male, solid waste collector, was riding in the hopper area of a solid waste truck when he fell out and struck his head on the pavement. He was riding in the hopper area because the step he usually rode, located at the rear driver side, was broken. Another worker rode the rear step on the passenger side of the vehicle, and a third worker, the driver, drove. After approaching a stop, the driver looked into the rearview mirror and saw the decedent on the pavement. The driver stopped the truck, and …

Land Surveyor Struck And Killed By Passenger Vehicle, Kentucky Injury Prevention And Research Center

Fatality Case Reports--Motor Vehicle

One late fall day in 2009, at approximately 3:30 PM, two land surveyors had completed surveying tasks for the day and were walking north, on opposites sides of a two-lane rural state highway. They were returning surveying equipment to the company truck. Surveyor 1, company owner, was walking with traffic on the east side of the road, in the grass, a few feet to the right of the pavement. Surveyor 2 was walking on the edge of the pavement on the west side of the road. Both men were on the road on the blind side of a hill and …

Factors Associated With Tobacco Use Among Rural And Urban Pregnant Women, Whitney Jeanne Katirai

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influences of smoking on rural and urban pregnant women. More specifically, the variables of the knowledge of health effects, health provider recommendations, subscores from the Health Belief Model (HBM), and social support were explored in relation to the smoking behavior of pregnant women. A secondary purpose was to investigate the accuracy of self-reported smoking during pregnancy using biochemical validation. Pregnant women (N=71) completed an anonymous questionnaire, designed by the researcher, to identify variables that predicted smoking for urban and rural women. Participants also gave a saliva sample for cotinine testing.

Approximately …