MIDWEST VEHICLE WASH SYSTEMS INC.

Employee Killed in Framework Collapse

At approximately 1:15 p.m. on November 19, 2002, Employee #1 was installing a 4- year-old used car wash system. When hoisting the box-type framework that weighed approximately 5,000 pounds onto the four legs, a corner at the south end hung u p when within inches of being in position. Employee #1 flipped the lever of the chain hoist on the Southwest corner to lower the steel upper framework. The hois t dropped the corner of the frame. None of the 12-inch pads on the base of the f our legs had been bolted to the floor, and the legs were the only supports for t he four hoists attached to the top of the four legs. When the Southwest corner f ell, the whole framework shifted and collapsed, pinning Employee #1 against the west wall of the building. He sustained multiple rib fractures and internal inju ries and was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.