Fell Off My Ladder Today.....

JamesNLA

Man that sucked. 10 foot A frame and like the dumb a$$ I am, had it leaning up on a wall to get into an attic access. Checked the feet, they were stable on a 1" grout line......and I told myself as I was doing this, that this was a bad idea however stupidity prevailed. climbed up the first few steps and kinda wiggled around a bit, she was stable, so I went up the rest of the way. Got to the top and was just about to start climbing in and the next thing I know I heading down rather fast. I made a last ditch effort to grab the jamb of the access, but I couldn't hang on. Between my weight and the fact I was already falling was too much to hang on. So down I went, landed on my feet, than fell on top of the ladder. HO starts screaming for her kid to see if he got hurt, I politley told her, "It was me". She comes running as I start to think of a good lie to tell her so I don't look like a complete idiot. "WHAT HAPPENED, ARE YOU ALRIGHT" I was ok, I banged my hand a little but it was my nerves that were shot. My hands were shaking a little. Scared the 5hit right out of me. I have fallen before, but usually just a little jump to the ground and all is well, this was the first time I went down hard to the tile floor. Serves me right for only bringing the 4 foot and 10 foot ladders....Needed my 8. I remember a thread about some of you who really ate it off a ladder, but this was my first time going all the way down and not being able to stop my fall. Really sucked. However I did refrain from screaming 5HIT on the way down. Been working on my foul mouth recently. So, has anybody seen my sign?

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Chris G

I fell off a six foot step once., It was scarier and more painful than you think it would be. I was about four feet above the floor, (plywood), when one of the legs of the ladder buckled near the bottom. It sucks when you're flying through the air and realize you have no control over what's going to happen next. All you can do is put your hand out to break the fall. Which usually breaks your wrist.

Eric K

My pap was working with us a few years back and he was drilling over his head standing on top of a 10' A frame on a trailer, no one was on that side of the trailer to see what he was doing. He pushed too hard on the drill which in turn pushed the top of the ladder out from under him. Broke some ribs and bruises. After that pap got office duty.

Magnettica

Let me see if I got this right.

You only had a choice between a 4 footer and a 10 footer. And because you had the 10 footer, it wouldn't fit into the attic access so you were forced to use the 10 footer and lean it against the wall. Correct?

The 10 footer too tall, the 4 footer too short. I would have said, sorry, ma'am, I have to come back later with the right ladder. I've been there and done that, falling 8' once in a garage and aggrivating my already never-healing torn ligament in my right ankle.

Use this as a lesson that using the right tools applies to all jobs.

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Paul_R

At my house the main entrance door has a "plant shelf" above the door. It has about a three foot by six or so space on which we had a ficus tree growing in a rather large pot. Also there are two nice windows up there. Well we got hit by a hot spell and being too cheap to start running the AC, I told my wife that I would get a ladder and go up to open the windows. My nice Little Giant ladder was at a work site, so I went to the garage to grab a ladder. I got one that belonged to my wife before we met, and proceeded to the room to place the ladder on our nice shiney fake hardwood floor. Put the ladder up, got nearly up to the ledge, and the ladder went out from underneath me. I had a sense of helplessness and dread as I headed towards the floor. I landed on my left foot, and then my back. Hoping only to have a sprain, my wife took me to the hospital. Ended up with a badly broken heel. I probably cracted a rib or two, but my main interest was trying to get some relief from the pain of my foot. Any way now I have 12 screws holding my heel together, and on July 5 the doc will let me know if I can start putting weight on it. On the work site I always make sure ladders are secure, and safe, but at home, I just wasn't thinking "safety". Only fell about 8 feet, but that was plenty.
Count your blessings, James. I am sure it was an eye opener!
Some other time I'll talk about a job where I took a charge from some poorly insulated wires comming into a house.

Happy Painting! Paul

Polish

Here in the UK, the compensation culture is catching on.
An electrician was recently awarded $250,000 dollars, for slipping down the last two rungs of a six-rung ladder. He had not been shown how to come down the ladder.
He was able-bodied. All electrical Companies now have to run courses on how to climb and descend ordinary ladders.
I recently employed an engineer. He was 52 years old, and a highly qualified person. I asked him to remove the battery from our fork lift truck. It was under the seat, and during the removal of the battery, the seat fell and chopped off the end of his little finger. Needless to say we were found guilty of negligence for not providing this man with a Risk Assessment explaining everything he had to do step by step. He won $80,000 dollars.

AtlanticWBConst

2 years ago, on a 4 foot step. Needed a 6'. Fell, landed on floor "SMACK" - head on concrete. Thought for sure that I was seriously injured. First thought was: At least we are working in a hospital.
Ended up being ok. Couldn't believe that I didn't crack my skull.

Anyways, BE CAREFUL!!

One large construction company that we do work for has the safety guidelines that must be read and signed off on. BTW-They don't allow step ladders to be folded and used like a normal ladder. They also don't allow metal ladders of any kind on jobs, only fiberglass.

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joasis

This thread brings back a very painful memory for me...while we all have had falls or accidents.....my Grandfather, who at the time was 77, leaned a ladder up in the shop to get something down from the top of a closet...the ladder skated out as described above, and he died 7 hours later as a result of the fall....he hit his head on the floor....that was in 1985, and I think about that everytime I check a ladder on a floor surface.

BTW, I like the Little Giant ladders a lot, but I don't want to carry the weight around...suckers are heavy!

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dougchips

edit-deleted post

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joasis

Corrected.....1985

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JamesNLA

Yes, this was not one of my more brilliant moments.
I needed to get to the alarm box and trace down a sensor that was getting removed. Wall paper guy needed to finish his area, and I wouldn't let him just clip the wire and stuff it in the wall.

So he was waiting on me. Wasn't planning on going into the attic that day so I had not brought the proper size ladder. It's no excuess because that HO or wall paper hanger wouldn't pay my wage for the next X amount of months should I have gotten really hurt or worse.

I'm just thankful it wasn't worse. I'll gladly take this lesson with a sore wrist and bruised ego.

So now here's the worst part of the story that I was too ashamed to mention before. After I fell I got my ladder out of the house. I decided to go look in the garage...and there is a brand new (old) 6 ft Werner. I just shook my head. Yeah, adding insult to injury...literally.

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"....And then we all switch places when I ring the bell"
-Adrock

RobertCDF

I was putting truss clips on a vaulted ceiling (16' up) in a house when I was on another framing crew. I had an extension ladder leaned up against the top plates right when I got to the top the bottom swung out I reached for the bottom of the truss and missed. I also had the tico nailer in my hands. The ladder slid down the wall till it hit the window sill at about 18" off the ground. My face slammed into the ladder and then I fell off the rest of the way.
Boss was glad I was ok but you could tell he was mad that the tico gun got messed up.

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AtlanticWBConst

I now keep a 24' extension, 8 foot, 6 foot, and 2 foot step on the top of my truck - at all times...That way I'll have the right ladder for the job and be a little safer....

(Lost all our good HD 4' steps - by forgetful workers placing them on truck roofs and not remembering to tie them down )

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Runamuk

I never let any one use the f word, "fall", on my jobs! I have too many big ladders!

Rick

KentWhitten

I've had my fun share of flying through the air and saying "wha...."

Last time the whole neighborhood got quite an earful, but I almost killed myself literally. Like Chris said, it's usually the wrist and that's exactly what happened.

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ChrWright

Was watching one of those "Medical Incredible" shows on Discovery Health:

An electrician working on a 10' step ladder was drilling holes to pull wire with a Hole Hog. He fell..... and impaled his right eye with the 12" auger bit. It drove straight into the eye socked and out the side of his skull. Miraculously, he only lost the eye and didn't suffer any brain damage.

Beeeeeee careful.

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ProWallGuy

Just last Tuesday, I had a hanger on a 32' extension. He apparently didn't have it footed well, and it kicked out. He rode it down hard and fast. End result, broken wrist requiring pins, multiple compound fractures of the ankle, requiring several pins and screws, and a fractured vertebrae. He is 51, and this just might end his hanging days.

Double check all ladders, and the surfaces they are footed on. You can't be too careful.

BTW, his fall scared all of us so bad, no one had the stones to climb up there to finish the job, me included. I blew the profit on the job and rented an aerial lift to finish the job. $450 for 1 hour worth of work.

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Tom R

Wow, that sucks, - - but I don't blame ya' . . .

ron schenker

In the not to distant future we'll have jet packs like on the "Jetsons"

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needthingsdone?

OWWWW !! The painful memories !!
I had a 20 ft extension set up at about 12 feet against the inside of a timber framed shade structure on a concrete pool deck coated with cooldeck. First thing in the morning and the deck was still damp. As I'm turning bolts for the metal roof framing the ladder kicks out at the bottom and I ride it down and land on it hands and knees. 5" gash to my shin from the ladder rung I landed on, which hurt a bunch, and worse was the loss of all the skin on the inside of the arm I had wrapped around the rough timber. That scab broke open everyday for weeks!!!
I asked my helper why he didn't catch me and he stammered for a second and then Apologized!!!!

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