Blue Sheet: Dozer 4242 Slow Roll Over last week

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Blue Sheet: Dozer 4242 Slow Roll Over last week

BLUE SHEET
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
CAL FIRE
Preliminary Summary Report of Serious CAL FIRE Injuries, Illnesses, Accidents and Near-Miss Incidents

Dozer 4242 Slow Roll Over
Vehicle Accident
September 23, 2009
Guiberson Incident– Wildland Fire
CA-VNC-054871
Accident Review Incident Number
CA-CSR-000083

This Preliminary Summary Report is intended as an aid in accident prevention, and to provide factual information from the first 24 hours of the accident review. To that end it is published and distributed within a short time frame. Information contained within may be subject to revision as further investigation is conducted, and other reports and documents are received.

SYNOPSIS

The following information is a preliminary summary of an incident that occurred during wildland fire suppression activities in which a CAL FIRE bulldozer slowly rolled onto its side into a drainage.

NARRATIVE

At approximately 0130 hours on September 23, 2009, CAL FIRE Dozer 4242 was operating on the Guiberson Fire in the Fillmore area of Ventura County. While widening and improving a fire access road, the dozer operator was working along side of an overgrown drainage when the embankment gave way causing the dozer to slowly roll onto its side. The operator was able to release himself from the dozer and climb up the embankment to the road.

There were no injuries. The operator was wearing all appropriate PPE and his seat belt restraints were in use.

The bulldozer was removed from the drainage later that day and inspected. There was no significant damage to the equipment and it was returned to service.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMMEDIATE REVIEW

Seatbelts and restraints must be utilized at all times whenever vehicles and equipment are in motion.
Operators of equipment must maintain situational awareness when working in unfamiliar surroundings
When visibility is reduced, operators should scout the area from the ground prior to proceeding into the area.

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Wednesday, September 30, 2009