Person injured when pry bar slipped
- Safety Flash
- Published on 24 March 2026
- Generated on 15 May 2026
- IMCA SF 06/26
- 2 minute read
A crew member who was applying downward pressure to their pry bar to lift a track, fell towards the deck when the pry bar slipped.
What happened?
During trenching operations, one of the tracks on a tracked vehicle became dislodged from the drive sprocket, whilst traversing difficult ground. Two crew began the task of refitting the track over the drive sprocket. The link pin on the track could not be accessed to split the track so, with deteriorating weather, the crew used pry bars on either side of the track to try to lift it and align it in place. During the task, the crew member who was applying downward pressure to their pry bar to lift the track, fell towards the deck when the pry bar slipped from the track, contacting the deck with their right hand. The crew member attended a local clinic who confirmed a fracture to the knuckle on the right hand.
Re-enactment: NOT actual incident
Lessons Identified
- Could this task have been done in a safer way?
- Context drives behaviour: What effect might worsening weather have on you and your work? Could you feel pressured by circumstances to do things in a less safe way to try and get the job done quickly?
- In this case, the JSA was amended to include different techniques for this particular task.
- Is your PPE up to task? In this case, Impact gloves may not have prevented the injury but may have reduced the severity.
Related Safety Flashes
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IMCA SF 23/25
18 December 2025
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IMCA SF 16/24
14 August 2024
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