Sheet Metal Worker Falls
Through Ceiling Panel

A 20-year-old sheet metal worker, part of a crew constructing a new metal building, died when he fell through an overlapping joint in the ceiling panels of the roof, landing on a concrete floor 21 feet below. The man was laying down insulation on the finished ceiling prior to attaching the top layer of metal. While walking across an 8-inch purlin, he apparently slipped and his foot landed on a seam in the sheet metal ceiling, shearing off screws which allowed the seam to split open. The man was not wearing any fall-protective equipment and suffered fatal head and neck injuries. Harnesses and lifelines were available on site, but workers were not required to use them.

The builder believed it was impractical to comply with fall protection guidelines for this type of building construction. The pre-engineered building had a 1/2 inch pitch, and workers were accustomed to working on the roof without fall-protective gear. The ceiling panels were 29-gauge corrugated steel attached every 9 inches to the purlins by #12, 1-inch long self-tapping sheet metal screws with hex heads. Screws were attached with an electric screwdriver equipped with a variable ratchet clutch. This application requires training, as it is possible to apply too much torque and shear off heads of screws.

1. Builders should design roof systems to include attachment points for fall protection lifelines.

--Anchor points may be installed during construction, or provided directly from steel fabricators.

--Anchor points would be useful for future maintenance and other work on the roof.

--Use of self-retracting lifelines would allow workers great freedom of movement.

2. Builders and roofers should comply with OSHA fall protection standards at all times.

--Builders should not rely on worker's skill to work safely overhead without fall protection.

--Workers may be at risk due to sickness, minor injury, lack of sleep, stress, fear of heights, etc.

3. Builders should test electric screwdrivers to determine the proper torque setting for each application.

--The screws holding the corrugated steel were not designed to support a man walking on the top.

--This may be the reason we saw panels with missing screws (missing heads).

--Perhaps this joint was weakened in this manner and failed when the man slipped off the purlin.