$40 million fire linked to untrained lift truck operator

Contact with overhead power line destroys a Tampa, Fla. apartment complex.

By -- Modern Materials Handling, 7/1/2000

Lift trucks, in the hands of inexperienced and untrained operators, can be dangerous. That's been proven once again - this time in Tampa, Fla. with costly consequences. This incident underscores the importance of employers ensuring that employees are trained, as rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) require.

As reported by the St. Petersburg Times, a forklift operator, Jose Chirino, allegedly ran into an overhead electric power line while lifting trusses at an apartment construction project. The power line contact set off a fire, reported to be one of the worst in Tampa's history, with damage estimated at $40 million. The fire destroyed the Ybor city apartment complex and leveled an U.S. post office.

Chirino's employer, Texican Construction Corp., had sent some forklift operators to safety training, the Times reported. But Chirino wasn't among them.

OSHA's revised training rules, now in effect, require training before operating a forklift. The agency is reported to be investigating the accident.