Stay out of the path of what can hit you
Struck-by 5 min 29 CFR 1926.201 · 29 CFR 1926.601
Why it matters
Struck-by means something hits you: a truck, a tool, a board, or a line under tension. A vehicle that cannot see behind needs a backup alarm or a spotter. Stay out of the swing and the backup path. Do not walk under a raised bed or a load. Get the operator's eyes first.
The talk
A truck is backing toward the building. The bed is up a little so the load will slide. A board sticks past the side. You cut behind the truck because the long way around takes more time. At the same time a tool comes off the deck above, and a cable in a pull is tight enough to snap if the hitch lets go. Struck-by means something hits you. It can be the vehicle. It can be the tool. It can be the board. It can be that line under tension. You do not have to be the one doing the work. You only have to be standing in the path.
A vehicle with an obstructed rear view needs a backup alarm or a spotter. That is 1926.601. If the driver cannot see behind, one of those two has to be in place. The spotter stands where the driver can see them, not in the spot the truck is about to fill. Flaggers and signals follow 1926.201. If you are not the flagger and you are not the spotter, stay out of it. Stay out of the swing of the machine and out of the backup path. Do not walk under a raised bed or under a load. A bed that is up can come down. A load can shift. Before you pass near a machine, make eye contact with the operator. If you do not have their eyes, you are not clear to move.
Today, point out every vehicle that will back up and every machine that will swing. If the rear view is blocked, we have a backup alarm that works or we have a spotter. We do not back it on a guess. Name the spotter, and name the flagger if we need one. Everyone else stays out of that path. Nobody walks under a raised bed or under a load to grab a tool. Before you step near a machine, get the operator's eyes. If a line is under tension, stand off to the side, not in the line it would take if it let go. If you see a person in the backup path, stop the move. Do not wait to see if they jump clear.
Key points
- Struck-by means a vehicle, a tool, a board, or a line under tension hits you.
- A vehicle with a blocked rear view needs a backup alarm or a spotter.
- Flaggers and signals follow 1926.201.
- Stay out of the swing and the backup path.
- Do not walk under a raised bed or a load.
- Make eye contact with the operator before you move in close.
- Stand off to the side of a line that is under tension.
Do this
- Use a backup alarm or a spotter when the driver cannot see behind.
- Stay out of the swing and the backup path.
- Make eye contact with the operator before you pass close.
- Stand off to the side of a line under tension.
- Stop the move if a person is in the path.
Do not do this
- Do not back a vehicle with a blocked rear view and no alarm and no spotter.
- Do not walk under a raised bed.
- Do not walk under a load.
- Do not step behind a machine before the operator sees you.
- Do not stand in line with a cable that is under tension.
Talk about it
- Which vehicles today cannot see behind, and is it an alarm or a spotter?
- Where is the backup path, and where will the machine swing?
- Who needs eye contact with the operator before they pass a machine?
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