The Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center (KIPRC) has issued recommendations for dump truck safety after researching the prevalence of incidents.
Over the past five years, the United States has experienced at least one fatal dump truck incident per day, accord to KIPRC.
The hazard alert addresses the issue and provides the following recommendations for prevention:
- Employers who utilize dump trucks should enforce a strict seat belt policy. A 2013 Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) study determined that dump truck drivers had the lowest seat belt usage rate (70%) of all commercial motor vehicle (CMV) body types;
- Dump truck drivers should reduce their speed to below that of the posted speed limit when entering a curve. Any speed limit posted on curve warning signs are meant for passenger vehicles, not CMVs. 40% of speed-related fatalities occur on curves; and
- Dump truck operators should show caution when raising the truck bed to unload materials. Due to their design, dump trucks can easily tip if on a surface that is not level, material sticks to one side of the bed, load is uneven or heavy on top of box, or if the tires do not even have pressure.
Other resources regarding dump truck incidents are available on the Kentucky Occupational Safety and Health Surveillance hazard alert report.